Formula 1 News: Ocon hits out as 2024 Williams link emerges (2nd Update)

(GMM) Esteban Ocon admits he recently visited Williams’ F1 factory in Grove for a seat fitting.

However, Canal Plus reports that the departing Alpine driver is definitely poised to sign a contract for 2025 and beyond with Haas – with a deal set to be announced ahead of the Belgian GP.

Rumors emerged in the past couple of days that Williams boss James Vowles asked Ocon, 27, if he might consider leaving Alpine early and racing instead in Logan Sargeant’s car for the remainder of 2024.

Alpine reportedly scuppered the move, fearing the Alex Albon-Ocon combination would be too great a threat in the constructors’ championship battle.

“I saw this information in the press,” Ocon told AFP news agency in Hungary.

“It’s true that I went to do a test at Williams a few weeks ago to see how I felt in the car, especially because my size is unusual – I’m very tall,” he said.

“There are discussions in progress with several teams, but nothing is sealed. We’ll see what happens. My goal is to stay in Formula 1 and I’m confident.

“In the meantime, I want to finish the season with Alpine.”

AFP said Alpine “categorically denied” that Ocon will be leaving the team before the end of the season.

And other sources report that Ocon is much more likely to drive for Haas next year, rather than Williams.

“The discussions are going very well,” said Ocon, without mentioning Haas, “and it allows me to concentrate as best I can on what I have to do each weekend because I want to finish the story with Alpine in the best possible way. The team can count on me.

“I’m very confident about still being on the grid for the next few years,” he concluded.

James Vowles has admitted that the Williams team no longer considers Ocon an option for 2025, increasing Valtteri Bottas’ chances of a return.

(GMM) Esteban Ocon has renewed his criticism of Alpine, as it emerges he even wanted to leave the team before the 2024 season is even complete.

Amid on and off-track conflicts with his fellow French teammate Pierre Gasly this year and behind-the-scenes trouble with team bosses, Ocon and Alpine announced at the beginning of June that they will part ways for 2025.

However, it is now emerging at the scene of the Hungarian GP that Ocon, 27, actually visited Williams’ team headquarters recently for a seat fitting.

Blick newspaper, and its veteran F1 journalist Roger Benoit, say the plan was for Ocon to immediately replace the struggling Logan Sargeant at Williams – to help the team catch up with Alpine in the constructors’ standings.

Unsurprisingly, Alpine would not agree to release Ocon from his 2024 contract, but Benoit thinks a Williams seat for the Frenchman after the summer break remains a possibility.

So in light of that development, Ocon insisted that a lot of Alpine’s problems this year was because the team refused to listen to the drivers “for years” about how to improve performance.

“There are a lot of things that were not done as they should have been,” he said in Budapest. “We (drivers) all said things about the development of the car. A lot of the problems were there a few years ago.”

Meanwhile, despite his new links with Williams, Ocon is actually fully expected to move to Haas next year, replacing long-time team driver Kevin Magnussen.

Haas boss Ayao Komatsu said: “I take nothing away from all the contributions and fantastic input Kevin has given to the team to get it to where we are now. What was lacking was consistency. That was the biggest factor.”

The Japanese admits that signing rookie Oliver Bearman for 2025 was a factor in the decision, with Haas expected to announce the Ocon news shortly.

“If you look at Nico (Hulkenberg) and Kevin, when it comes to providing a consistent reference, I need a driver closer to Nico’s consistency,” Komatsu said.

“But the difference between Kevin and Nico is very small,” he insisted. “The results and the number of points may look quite different in the end, but the decisive factor for the difference is not great.

“So it was difficult decision to make regarding Kevin.”