Esteban Ocon praises Haas’ big improvements after setup overhaul, narrowly missing Q3 and eyeing points finish in Sunday’s race.
Esteban Ocon came just short of reaching Q3 – a notable improvement for Haas F1 after a tough weekend just one week ago. The Frenchman was upbeat after qualifying, praising his team for their efforts and saying he finally felt able to fight within the midfield again.
“It’s a huge step forward from this morning to now,” Ocon told Canal+. “We changed a lot on the car, and the team really listened. We’ve made clear progress in performance.”
Though there’s still work to do, Ocon is optimistic: “The car felt much better. It’s not perfect yet, but there’s real potential. We’ve got more upgrades planned, but for now, we’re focused on this weekend. We’re just outside the points – the goal is to score.”
Ocon also highlighted one key area where Haas seems to be gaining ground
– tyre management:
“We were stronger than some teams when it came to front tyre degradation. That’s where we focused our setup, and it could play in our favor. But it’s going to be tough. The front tyres are very sensitive here, and with cooler temperatures expected tomorrow, that could make it worse. Still, we’re close to the top 10 – and that’s encouraging.”
Meanwhile, young British driver Oliver Bearman didn’t make it past Q1 and admitted their qualifying plan was too aggressive.
“We had planned for three runs, but couldn’t get the third one in,” Bearman said. “It’s always tricky to fit in three laps, and I just didn’t make the line in time.”
Bearman is also under investigation by the stewards for allegedly impeding Lance Stroll, which could see him slapped with a grid penalty and forced to start from the back.
“We made a few setup changes – my first lap was slightly better – but most of the tweaks were made with the race in mind. Hopefully, we’ll have a good one tomorrow,” Bearman added.
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Haas find pace as Ocon shines and Bearman stumbles Haas find pace as Ocon shines and Bearman stumbles
