A title fight with Verstappen? Bring it on, says Ocon!

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Force India's Esteban Ocon would relish a title fight with Max Verstappen, his old rival from F3 in which the two locked horns in massive battles together.

The Dutch prodigy is already a bona fide three-time Grand Prix winner while Ocon, a Mercedes protégé, has yet to secure his first podium finish.

But few doubt the French driver isn't on his way to stardom. He may have some catching up to do compared to his Red Bull rival, but the 21-year-old will sooner or later be snapping at Verstappen's heels, an exciting prospect according to Ocon.

"Yeah, if there is a championship at the end of that fight I'd sign straight away, there's no problem there," Ocon told Autosport.

"Charles [Leclerc], Max, those drivers are very, very strong. I've been racing with them since the very beginning.

"I know how good they are and I'm sure we'll meet in the future again."

Ocon and Perez friendly but still not friends

Casting his mind back to the past, Ocon says it was intense and fraught back in the day between himself and Verstappen in the junior ranks.

"It goes back as long as 2010, 2011," he remembers.

"[We were] not friends at all. It was a very intense fight. It came out a bit too much at some point.

"Now we have no problem at all, we speak well together and he is a cool guy. Back in the day it was very intense."

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Phillip van Osten

Motor racing was a backdrop from the outset in Phillip van Osten's life. Born in Southern California, Phillip grew up with the sights and sounds of fast cars thanks to his father, Dick van Osten, an editor and writer for Auto Speed and Sport and Motor Trend. Phillip's passion for racing grew even more when his family moved to Europe and he became acquainted with the extraordinary world of Grand Prix racing. He was an early contributor to the monthly French F1i Magazine, often providing a historic or business perspective on Formula 1's affairs. In 2012, he co-authored along with fellow journalist Pierre Van Vliet the English-language adaptation of a limited edition book devoted to the great Belgian driver Jacky Ickx. He also authored "The American Legacy in Formula 1", a book which recounts the trials and tribulations of American drivers in Grand Prix racing. Phillip is also a commentator for Belgian broadcaster Be.TV for the US Indycar series.