Esteban Ocon has signed a multi-year deal with the Haas Formula One team to partner teenage British driver Ollie Bearman from 2025 onwards.
It was announced at the start of June that Ocon would be leaving Alpine after five seasons following a high-profile crash with teammate Pierre Gasly in Monaco.
While he has struggled of late, the Frenchman has shown he is capable of great things in the past, claiming a memorable victory at the 2021 Hungarian Grand Prix.
‘Very proud to announce I will be joining Haas in 2025 on a multi-year deal. I am thrilled to embark on this new chapter in my F1 career and join an ambitious racing team whose spirit, work ethic, and undeniable upward trajectory has really impressed me,’ Ocon posted on Twitter.
‘I’d like to thank Gene [Haas, team owner] and Ayao [Komatsu, team principal] for our honest and fruitful discussions these last few months.
‘Haas F1 Team has big plans and clear targets for the future, and I am looking forward to reuniting with Ayao (my first ever F1 race engineer!), as well as working with everyone in Kannapolis, Banbury, and Maranello.
‘For now, my focus and energy is still fully dedicated to Alpine. We’ve got 11 races to go this year and I am more motivated than ever to end my five-year collaboration with the team on a high.’
It means American team Haas, who are seventh in the standings after 13 races, will have an entirely new driver line-up for 2025, with Nico Hulkenberg joining Sauber (soon to be Audi) while Kevin Magnussen looks set to drop out of F1.
19-year-old Bearman was announced to be joining Haas ahead of the British Grand Prix having impressed on his debut for Ferrari earlier in the season after he was called in to replace the unwell Carlos Sainz.
And he sent a message to his soon to be first full-time F1 teammate, simply replying to Ocon on Instagram with: ‘Congrats mate!’
Big things are expected of the Essex-born racer though he will now have to contend with the formidable Ocon who has earned a, sometimes unfair, reputation for clashing with teammates on and off the track.
The 27-year-old had frosty relationships with the likes of Sergio Perez, Fernando Alonso and Gasly, but Bearman has already acknowledged that any teammate wasn’t going to be a ‘mentor’ to him.
‘It won’t be their job to do that, but I think just in the actions of their driving, I can learn a lot,’ the Brit said just prior to Ocon’s signing.
‘The main thing will be listening to their feedback, listening to their comments about the car, what they liked from the car and that will be the main way that they help me.
‘Of course, their job in the end is to race for themselves and it is nothing to do with me, but of course, I will learn a lot from their input.’
For now, both drivers will be focusing on this weekend’s Belgian Grand Prix, with Ocon currently 18th in the F1 championship, while Bearman is 14th in both the F1 and Formula 2 standings thanks to his one-off appearance in Saudi Arabia.
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