Ocon ready, eager and watching for F1 opening

Renault reserve driver Esteban Ocon says that he's all set for his chance to race in Formula One, wherever and whenever the opportunity eventually comes from.

The reigning GP3 Series champion is believed to be under consideration to join the Renault race line-up in 2017. He's also a member of the Mercedes junior programme and competing for the marque in this year's DTM championship, meaning that his name has also been linked to the Manor Racing Team as a possible mid-season replacement for Rio Haryanto who has run out of sponsorship.

Asked if the Manor move really was a genuine possibility, Ocon admitted that he wasn't sure - but if it was then he would leap at the opportunity.

"I don’t know. If there was an opportunity anywhere I would take it. I will be ready to take it that’s for sure.

"I have been around driving quite a lot of cars, Formula One cars, so if there is an opportunity I would be really happy to take it.

"My manager has to decide," the 19-year-old Frenchman admitted. "For sure, my goal is to be in Formula One in the future. I am happy to be in DTM at the moment but I don’t want to stay there for too long. I want to be in Formula One in the future so if there is an opportunity in Formula One I will push them to accept that."

While fellow Renault protégé Oliver Rowland has suggested he would make a better candidate for a Grand Prix race seat than Ocon because of his current GP2 experience, Ocon himself was confident that opting for DTM instead had been the right call.

"Very happy [with the decision]. I am learning a lot. Together we have very experienced drivers and a very high level series, one of the toughest for sure. I am still happy with my choice."

Ocon added that he didn't think anyone had impressed in GP2 this season in the way that Stoffel Vandoorne managed in 2015 to put himself at the head of the line for a race seat at McLaren. "No one has been consistent in GP2, so others is no-one running at the front like Stoffel did last year, he was very consistent."

With so many talented drivers 'bubbling under' but so few openings available on the Formula One grid, Ocon admitted he was keeping his ear to the ground when it came to 'silly season' rumours about driver signings.

"That is how it is, there are 22 seats in Formula One," he shrugged. "You need to watch that.

"They are very good drivers, and talented. It is important to keep them in the sport, they are great drivers and champions. Of course it is not great for young drivers because there is no space but at the end they are world champions, they deserve their place."

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Andrew Lewin

Andrew first became a fan of Formula 1 during the time when Michael Schumacher and Damon Hill were stepping into the limelight after the era of Alain Prost, Nigel Mansell and Aryton Senna. He's been addicted ever since, and has been writing about the sport now for nearly a quarter of a century for a number of online news sites. He's also written professionally about GP2 (now Formula 2), GP3, IndyCar, World Rally Championship, MotoGP and NASCAR. In his other professional life, Andrew is a freelance writer, social media consultant, web developer/programmer, and digital specialist in the fields of accessibility, usability, IA, online communities and public sector procurement. He worked for many years in magazine production at Bauer Media, and for over a decade he was part of the digital media team at the UK government's communications department. Born and raised in Essex, Andrew currently lives and works in south-west London.