Eseban Ocon hails points in Canada as « reward » for Haas

Esteban Ocon said he was very satisfied to have scored points during Haas's 200th Grand Prix in Formula 1, thanks to a 9th place finish in Canada. The Frenchman admitted that the gamble on a one-stop strategy had paid off.

A profitable strategy

Starting 14th on the grid in Montreal, alongside his teammate Ollie Bearman (13th), Esteban Ocon began the race on hard tires, while Ollie Bearman started on medium tires. The team had decided to split the strategies, but Ocon's proved to be more effective: after a very long first stint, he switched to medium tires and carried them to the finish, securing two points.

"I'm very happy, very happy with the work of the whole team this weekend," the 28-year-old driver said after the race.

I think we maximized the potential. It was not obvious before the start that this strategy would be better, but the risk paid off. We were able to string together solid laps in clean air, which was important, and we managed to overtake quite a few cars thanks to the overcut. Then, we brought the car home to maintain the position despite the safety car. It was a tough race, but really good.

When asked about the satisfaction of having benefited from a successful strategic gamble in such a tight pack, Esteban Ocon added: « Yes, it's a great reward for the team to score something at our 200th Grand Prix. It's important to seize every opportunity because they don't come often, and this weekend, we did it. I'm very happy about that. »

Ollie Bearman out of the points

On Ollie Bearman's side, the afternoon was more frustrating. Stuck in traffic, the Briton was unable to climb up and finished 11th, just outside the points.

Honestly, I think we had a bit more pace today. But with our strategy, we found ourselves stuck behind those who started on hard tires, and with the DRS train, it's really, really difficult to overtake, explained the 20-year-old driver.

Once in clean air, I had a good pace, but I spent the whole race stuck in the DRS. I'm satisfied, but there was a bit more to chase today.

Asked about Haas' progress in understanding the VF-25, Ollie Bearman was positive: « Yes, I would say we are making progress. I think Fridays remain our weak point, we seem less competitive at the start of the weekend compared to the rest, but I'm happy that the team scored points and we will continue to push for the next race. »

Thanks to this result, Haas remains sixth in the constructors' standings with 28 points, tied with Racing Bulls, currently seventh.