United States – Performance of the French: Ocon an eighth place for nothing, Grosjean close to suspension!

Esteban Ocon (Racing Point Force India): disqualified, 8th at the finish (6th on the grid)

The Normand went through all the emotions during the United States Grand Prix: unfortunately, the negative will be remembered, with his exclusion from the final standings. The reason? Fuel consumption beyond the 100 kg/h limit. A problem that also affected Kevin Magnussen, a driver battling with Ocon in the second part of the race, the Dane having finished 9th on the track, less than two seconds ahead.

Before this bad news, the Mercedes protégé had lost two places at the start, overtaken by the Renault drivers. His first lap almost turned into a catastrophe, with the main party narrowly avoiding the collision between Grosjean and Leclerc at the end of the long straight.

Personally, I tried to finish the race, that’s what I take away from this Grand Prix, stated Esteban Ocon on the Canal+ microphone in the interview area. Adding, without referring to anyone in particular: other drivers tried to dive in or took big risks right from the start. Sometimes it works, but not throughout an entire season. We saw it today, there were crashes everywhere!

For a long time chasing Sainz in front of him, Esteban Ocon finally conceded. He found himself under pressure from Magnussen at the end of the race but didn’t yield. The future former Racing Point Force India driver finished behind the two Renaults, the French team, brilliant winner of the « race B ».

Disregarding the result, his feeling remained correct: we didn’t have the speed we wanted, so the result is satisfying (note: Ocon had not yet been penalized at the time of responding). The start unfortunately made the difference with the Renaults: we had the same pace as them afterward. The season is not over, we will fight until the end.

This penalty is certainly very damaging for Esteban Ocon, who had been on a series of four points finishes in the last five races. He is now eight points behind Sergio Pérez… who reclaimed eighth place in the Texas race after the application of penalties.

“Pushing the whole race, getting good points, and getting disqualified in the end for a stupid reason is probably the worst feeling ever. Our mistake… Anyway not giving up for sure!! #USGP #EO31 pic.twitter.com/u8vVd2D9sb” — Esteban Ocon (@OconEsteban) 21 October /f1/actualite/22982-ocon-et-magnussen-disqualifies-du-grand-prix-des-etats-unis-.html

Pierre Gasly (Scuderia Toro Rosso): 12th (19th on the grid)

A difficult race for a driver constantly struggling with rhythm. Penalized by five places in qualifying for changing power unit components, his feeling about the race will remain average:

« It was a long race. I picked up a lot of carbon debris in the first corner, which broke parts of the car. I had a big loss of grip, we did what we could but it was complicated. It will be better in Mexico », promised the future Red Bull driver, in fourteenth position in the general classification with 28 points.

Romain Grosjean (Haas F1 Team: Retirement, (8th on the grid)

The American edition of the third French participant did not last more than one lap. The incident was due to a collision with Charles Leclerc at the braking of turn 12. A contact explained in these terms, on the spot, without having reviewed the footage at the time of his interview:

« I think I brake earlier than Charles and Esteban. I find myself in the turbulence and I can’t stop the car, I lock a front wheel. I try to turn as much as possible to avoid contact with Charles but I can’t. I’m sorry for him. »

« Wrecked steering » and « steering wheel at 90 degrees », Romain Grosjean returned to the pit to retire, without having had the opportunity to shine on this circuit, five years after his second place. « I am very frustrated for the team that was at home here. »

The Haas driver ended his weekend summoned by the stewards. The sanction is a three-place penalty on his qualifying result in Mexico in a week. But the consequence is more serious: Romain Grosjean also lost a point on his annual license, the tenth in total. Just two more points and the Geneva native would be excluded from a Grand Prix. A bit more concentration is needed before the finale in Abu Dhabi! Especially since the stress isn’t overwhelming: the team’s fifth place in the constructors’ standings is almost assured (26 points ahead of McLaren, 37 points ahead of Racing Point Force India).