Esteban Ocon offered no form of resistance to Lewis Hamilton when the Mercedes driver overtook the Force India early on in the Monaco Grand Prix, and we now know why.

Hamilton was the first of the front-runners to pit for fresh tyres yesterday, rejoining the race on lap 12 sixth, just behind Ocon.

The current leader of the world championship breezed by the Frenchman however two laps later as the pair exited the tunnel.

Questioned on the move after the race by Sky Italia and asked if he had perhaps "made life too easy" for the Mercedes driver, Ocon hinted that an order had come into play.

"I'm a Mercedes driver, you should ask the boss," Ocon replied.

"It was pointless to fight with him, especially as he had new tyres," he added.

Asked if there is an 'unwritten rule' that Force India not make life difficult for Mercedes, Ocon answered: "Maybe."

Indeed, a reporter from Belgian newspaper La Dernière Heure put the question to Toto Wolff himself, the Silver Arrows boss admitting Ocon had been ordered to yield to Hamilton.

"Yes, because that's the way it is," said Wolff!

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