Esteban Ocon says he wouldn’t racing in F1 if he didn’t think he can fight at the front whether immediately or in the near future.
Having completed eight and a bit seasons in F1, Haas’ Ocon has never had the chance to compete at the front for race wins and podiums, leave alone a chance to fight for world championship. The Frenchman has been racing for midfield teams, even though he spent years at manufacturer team Alpine.
The French outfit never looked to be fighting at the front. At this level as well, Ocon has secured podium finishes for Force India/Racing Point and Alpine. He has only started with Haas, which is another midfield outfit as things stand. Despite his Mercedes junior status, he was pipped by couple others.
He had competition from George Russell and now Andrea Kimi Antonelli has gotten ahead of him. The only chance he has for now is to take Haas to newer levels in its partnership with Toyota. He believes he has what it takes to compete at the front and that he has shown it as well.
He states he wouldn’t be in F1 if he thought he couldn’t fight. He would simply leave the sport to try something else. “Yeah, otherwise I would not be here,” said Ocon, when asked if he thinks his time is going by considering the arrival of youngsters in the sport. “I would not even participate at this stage of my career. That’s where I want to be in the future.
“It has happened for a lot of drivers that they arrive at the right place at the right time. If you look at 2023, I look at Canada, I look at all the early places in the season, Jeddah in 2023. I was fighting with Lando three races in a row, last lap battles for P6, P7.
“And here he is with a race winning car and a chance to fight for the title. I think never give up, that’s the honest answer. I’m here in the purpose of fighting for that in the future. Otherwise, why would I train so hard, put in so much effort to be here to fight for P10? That’s what we are doing at the moment. This is not really what the dream is all about,” summed up Ocon.
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