Haas F1 Team has just announced that it has secured the signature of Esteban Ocon to a multi-year contract, starting in 2025, with the 27-year-old Frenchman
becoming the first driver with a win under his belt to drive for the American team since its Formula 1 debut in 2016.
Ocon, who also made his Formula 1 debut in 2016, climbed to the top step of the podium by winning the 2021 Hungarian Grand Prix with Alpine F1, the current team he is leaving at the end of 2024 to join to the Haas F1 Team.
The French driver has – to date – 146 starts in his Formula 1 career, and has previously raced for Manor Racing, Force India, Renault and Alpine, amassing 425 points with three podium finishes. 2022 was his best of the year in Formula 1 finishing eighth in the drivers’ championship.
In his statements, the head of the team, Ayao Komatsu, said:
I am delighted that we have secured the services of Esteban Ocon for the Haas F1 Team. I’ve obviously known his talents for a long time and our personal history goes back to Esteban’s maiden time racing a Formula 1 car – I was his race engineer that day with Lotus.
He showed his talents then coming off the back of strong performances in the junior classes – having just won European Formula 3 in 2014. Esteban became an established talent in Formula 1 and of course a grand prix winner.
The experience he brings, not only from his own talent, but also from his tenure with a factory manufacturer will contribute to our growth as an organization.
It was vital to have an experienced driver alongside Oliver Bearman next year, but Esteban is only 27 – still young with a lot to prove too. I think we have a hungry, dynamic pair of drivers and I look forward to welcoming Esteban to Haas F1 for 2025.
For his part, Esteban Ocon said:
I am excited to start this new chapter in my Formula 1 career and join the MoneyGram Haas F1 Team from
the start of the 2025 season. I will be joining a very ambitious racing team – whose spirit, work ethic and undeniable upside – have really impressed me.I would like to thank Gene Haas and Ayao Komatsu for their trust and support, and for our frank and fruitful discussions these past months. On a more personal note, I am very happy to be working with Ayao again as he was part of my debut when I first stepped into a Formula 1 car during my days in the Lotus Junior program over ten years ago. The Haas F1 Team has exciting plans and clear goals for the future, and I look forward to driving for the team.
In doing so, Haas completed its driving duo, as earlier this month the team announced that Oliver Bearman will be racing for them in the coming years.
Source: www.autoblog.gr
