Ocon: Baku team orders ‘not what we discussed before the race’

Esteban Ocon left Baku without points and with plenty of grievances, after a bruising Azerbaijan Grand Prix that saw Haas’ race strategy and mid-race team orders leave him dissatisfied.

The Frenchman’s race – which started from the pitlane following his disqualification from qualifying for a rear wing technical infringement – began in trouble when Nico Hülkenberg clipped Ocon at Turn 1.

He fortunately suffered minimal damage, but Haas pitted him under the Safety Car to switch to hard tyres with the aim of going the distance.

However, that early stop left Ocon vulnerable later on – especially when teammate Oliver Bearman closed in on fresher, softer rubber.

Team Orders Spark Frustration

As Bearman loomed in Ocon’s mirrors, Haas wasted no time instructing their more experienced driver to move aside. But Ocon wasn’t convinced the call was justified so soon.

He made his frustration clear over team radio: the request, he argued, didn’t match what had been agreed before the race. Ocon noted Bearman was still “more than one-and-a-half seconds behind” when the swap was ordered, insisting the timing was wrong.

After reluctantly yielding and sacrificing two seconds to let Bearman through on the main straight, Ocon told Haas after the flag that they had “a lot to review on the race, also, because that’s not what we discussed before the race.”

“I would have probably done things differently if it was clear,” he added.

Strategy Misfire Adds to Pain

In the media pen after the race, Ocon dialed back the direct heat on the swap but unleashed on the broader strategy blueprint that torpedoed his efforts.

“It was a good start; we tried a really aggressive strategy, which at the end made me lose out quite a lot,” he explained. “So, a bit of a shame on that part. We will review – it has been a difficult weekend for us.

“I think there are a lot of things we can improve for next weekend and this is what we will look out for in Singapore.”

Ocon’s frustration was amplified by Haas’ flashes of pace earlier in the weekend, when both cars had threatened the top 10. Instead, qualifying imploded — with the Frenchman knocked out in Q1, and then disqualified, and Bearman crashing in Q2.

Haas Must “Have a Clean Sweep”

For Ocon, Baku was just the latest in a string of weekends plagued by setbacks, which he believes Haas must urgently resolve if they are to progress.

“Yesterday [we had] a brake problem, in Monza we had an issue with the front end of the car really that was quite big,” he said.

“So, we just need to enter weekends and have a clean sweep and no issues, and a healthy weekend really. This is what we are all asking for.”

• Read also: Ocon thrown out of Baku qualifying over Haas rear wing deflection

While Bearman eked out a hard-fought P12, Ocon's distant P14 finish clearly left him unhappy on the day and demanding better from his team – and vowing to deliver when they get it right.

Singapore awaits, and with it, a chance for redemption.

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