Ocon gave Gasly his first break!

At the end of the day, Pierre Gasly may have Esteban Ocon to thank for the opportunity to race in Formula 1 this weekend.

The 21-year-old steps up into the big time in Sepang as he replaces Dany Kvyat at Toro Rosso for the next two races as Red Bull evaluates his potential for 2018.

Esteban Ocon has known Gasly since the two were kids as their parents were friends. While the Force India driver had already been bitten by the racing bug, his childhood friend preferred football.

At least until the day he tried a go-kart.

"When he was very young, maybe seven or eight, my parents were friends together with his parents," said Ocon.

• Gasly 'can't wait' to get to work in Malaysia

"I was driving go-karts one day, and he was there playing football. So my dad said, 'Why don't you try Esteban's go kart?' And after that he quit football! 

"So from the beginning of my career we've known each other basically."

Ocon, who  stepped into the limelight last year at Spa with Manor, acknowledged the pressures associated with an F1 debut, but he also reckoned that Gasly was fortunate to enjoy his maiden race at Sepang rather than at a more difficult venue. 

"It is tough, definitely," said the Frenchman.

"But it is tough when you arrive to tracks like Singapore and tracks like that.

"Arriving here is not the worst, so there will be places where you can be fast but there are places where you lack experience and can struggle. I think that is my point of view."

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