Esteban Ocon’s most likely 2027 destination after F1 exit

Esteban Ocon has ruled out racing in another category if he fails to secure a Formula 1 seat for 2027. 

The 30-year-old Frenchman is fighting to save his F1 career after Haas announced Ocon will exit the team at the end of the year. 

Ocon has made it abundantly clear he is only interested in racing in F1, but the only team with unconfirmed seats for 2027 outside of Haas is Red Bull’s sister team Racing Bulls. 

Given the obvious links to Red Bull and the team’s tendency to run younger drivers from its own talent pool, it appears Ocon is destined for at least one year on the F1 sidelines. 

Asked where he would like to be if he is unable to continue his F1 journey next year, Ocon was resounding in his response, replying: “Formula 1. 

“That’s where I deserve to be. If I look at the results and what I’ve shown in Formula 1, I deserve to be in Formula 1.

“Of course, there are other categories which are fantastic as well. But I want to be racing in Formula 1, in the next five, seven years. That’s what I want to be.

“So I will keep pushing to be that position. In the near future, that’s the only thing I’m looking at so far.”

When pressed on whether he would accept a reserve, or third driver role with an F1 team, he replied: “Yes. If there are no possibilities to race next year, that’s what I will do. 

“I’m still working on it, still discussing. When I have more news I will announce something definitely, but at the moment, full focus is on this weekend.”

Is there still hope for Esteban Ocon in F1? 

This feels like deja vu for Ocon, who finds himself facing a very similar situation to in 2019, when he was left without a full-time seat after Force India was taken over by Lawrence Stroll and rebranded to Racing Point. Lance Stroll was brought in to replace Ocon, unfairly leaving him with no drive. 

With no racing seat for the 2019 season, Ocon served as the official reserve and third driver for Mercedes, before securing a comeback with Renault in 2020. 

Despite being outperformed by team-mate Ollie Bearman since joining Haas at the start of last year, Ocon, who won the 2021 Hungarian Grand Prix for Alpine, still has plenty to offer and clearly feels he has unfinished business in F1. 

So where could he end up? The most obvious landing spot would be to remain at Haas in a reserve role, but bridges may have been burned in the way Ocon’s full-time exit has been handled. 

Ocon disagrees with Haas’ decision and there is no obvious route back into the team, who is expected to sign Ferrari junior and current Formula 2 championship leader Rafael Camara. 

Another option could be for Ocon to return to the Mercedes family, where he has close ties to both the factory team, as well as its customer Alpine. 

Mercedes’ customers also get the benefit of calling upon the Silver Arrows’ reserve drivers if required, which would open up more potential avenues for Ocon at McLaren, Alpine and Williams. 

Fred Vesti currently acts as Mercedes’ reserve but having Ocon as an additional back-up for Andrea Kimi Antonelli and George Russell would only strengthen the German manufacturer. 

Ocon could also look to the likes of Audi and Cadillac. Both teams have their respective driver line-ups locked in place for 2027, but openings could emerge for 2028, potentially handing Ocon a reprieve.