- Esteban Ocon will leave Haas at the end of the 2026 season after two years with the American team, although the Frenchman insists his Formula 1 career is not over.
- Ocon has been outperformed by teammate Ollie Bearman during their 39 Grands Prix together, trailing 61-45 in points, 21-14 in qualifying and 19-16 in their race head-to-head.
- Haas has yet to confirm Bearman’s 2027 teammate, with Rafael Câmara, Jack Doohan, Leo Fornaroli and Ryo Hirakawa among the potential candidates after completing TPC running with the team.
Esteban Ocon has announced his departure from the Haas F1 Team at the conclusion of the 2026 season, following prolonged speculation over the Frenchman’s future with the American outfit.
The 30-year-old took to social media to announce that he would be leaving Haas at season’s end, with the news also confirmed in a statement from the team itself. There was no confirmation, however, regarding Ocon’s future plans in Formula 1.
“My time with Haas F1 Team will come to an end at the end of the 2026 season,” read Ocon’s statement.
“I leave this project with my head held high and proud of my performances in what were not always the easiest of circumstances for various reasons and factors outside of my control.
“My immediate focus is the next race weekend. I will continue to work hard with the team, maximise every opportunity, and keep extracting every bit of performance from the car.
“There are still many races to go this season and, as always, I will give it my everything behind the wheel for myself and for my team.”
He concluded: “I am still motivated. I am still hungry. This is absolutely not the end of my Formula 1 career.”
Meanwhile, Haas Team Principal Ayao Komatsu noted in the team’s statement that it would not be sharing any news regarding its 2027 line-up yet, but thanked Ocon for his contributions since joining in 2025.
“I’d like to thank Esteban for everything he’s contributed to the team since joining us in 2025,” said Komatsu.
“His professionalism and commitment have proved valuable as we continue to grow as an organisation.
“Together this year we tackled the challenge of a major regulation change, where Esteban’s driving experience and inputs were significant as we’ve worked hard to develop the VF-26 across the season.
“There’s still plenty of racing ahead, and our focus remains on working together to maximise every opportunity through to the final race of the year.”
A Grand Prix winner with Alpine, Ocon’s F1 career appears to be at a crossroads, with another full-time seat potentially difficult to secure. Another stint as a reserve driver somewhere, as the Frenchman had in 2019 with Mercedes following his departure from Racing Point, could be his surest bet of maintaining a presence in F1.
Across 39 Grands Prix with Haas, Ocon has scored points on only 12 occasions. While his junior teammate Ollie Bearman has scored on 13 occasions during their time together, the total points tally favours the Briton 61-45.
Ocon has also been comprehensively outperformed in their qualifying head-to-head, which stands at 21-14 in Bearman’s favour. In races, it is slightly closer at 19-16, including Ocon’s recent eighth-place finish at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.
Though the Baku result comes too little, too late for the Frenchman, who has now spent nearly a decade in F1. A highly rated junior driver for both Renault and Mercedes, it can be argued that Ocon did not quite live up to the lofty expectations placed upon him.
As for Haas’ future alongside Bearman, the American team is spoilt for choice, with several drivers having already completed TPC (Testing of Previous Cars) sessions with the team.
Of the bunch, Ferrari junior and F2 standings leader Rafael Câmara looks a strong prospect. The same can be said of former Alpine driver and Haas reserve Jack Doohan, reigning Formula 2 champion Leo Fornaroli and Toyota WEC champion Ryo Hirakawa.
