Author of a complicated weekend in Japan, Esteban Ocon hoped to bounce back in Bahrain, a circuit full of memories for him, since he had achieved the very first podium of his career there in Formula 1 in 2020. But as soon as qualifying began, his ambitions were abruptly halted.
After making it out of Q1, unlike his teammate Oliver Bearman (20th), the French driver crashed on his first flying lap in Q2. In Turn 3, Ocon drove a little too aggressively onto a kerb, instantly losing control of his VF-25. The car slid off the line and ended up in the wall, causing significant damage and leading to a red flag.
🚩RED FLAG🚩
Esteban Ocon goes off track in Q2 ❌
The Frenchman is doing well 👍#BahrainGP #F1 pic.twitter.com/UGfOBkNDN1— CANAL+ F1® (@CanalplusF1) April 12, 2025
The Norman, very lucid when he came back to his error, did not seek to exonerate himself. "It's my fault. I shouldn't have made that mistake in qualifying, he confided to Canal+. I tried to push a little bit more in Turn 2 and ended up on that kerb. I lost the car and hit the wall. These are mistakes that don't normally happen to me. I'm disappointed with my performance today and I should have done better for the whole team."
Aware of the important work carried out by Haas to improve the competitiveness of the car This season, Ocon regrets not having been able to transform this potential into concrete results. "We've been working hard for a long time now. I really thought we could have a good qualifying today, that we could put ourselves in a good position for the race." Despite this setback, the Frenchman refuses to give up and remains hopeful for Sunday. "It's not over yet, and we're not that far from the points, though. We'll do everything we can to try to get into the points tomorrow. I'll give it my all, as always."
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Hilton Leon
13/04/2025 at 01:26 a.m.
It's normal that 2025 equals 2024. It's the driver, not the car, that's the problem.
Hilton Leon
13/04/2025 at 01:25 a.m.
and one more.
Yves-Henri RANDIER
13/04/2025 at 12:46 a.m.
Less lucky than Hulk who also almost went out in exactly the same place! A start to the season hardly better than that of 2024 in theAlpine