Spa-Francorchamps (Belgium) (AFP)
Esteban Ocon sees at 22 years his patience and his choice to get away from the F1 circuits rewarded by signing at Renault for two years from next year even if he could dream a moment to be a titular driver at Mercedes.
Son of a modest family who blew himself to the four veins to finance his career, the native of Evreux (Normandy) will find the excitement of the race after having to gnar for a year as a reserve driver of the German stable.
"I would like to be on the track and ride in the car.When I hear the cars start I have only one desire, it is to get in," he confessed to AFP in June when an interview on the sidelines of the GP de France.
Instead, he spent hours in the simulator at the factory in England, sometimes whole nights, to help develop the Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas cars that were fighting on the track. An ungrateful task in the image of his discretion that hides an iron determination.
- Under the wing of Wolff -
Ejected from Racing Point at the end of 2018 to make room for Lance Stroll, whose father largely finances this team, Esteban has feared a moment never come back in F1.
Toto Wolff, the boss of the F1 team of Mercedes, however, kept this big (1 meter 86) lanky brown under his wing. A calculation not completely disinterested since Bottas had only one year contract with a renewal "on merit".
The Finn has managed to do enough this year to keep his place in 2020 and, as a result, Ocon saw the disappearing option queen, that of becoming a titular driver at the wheel of a Silver Arrow, the car that dominates the F1 since 2014.
The option Renault becomes the best when Wolff has agreed to "lend" for two years.
Yet the diamond stable is currently not at its best. Currently sixth in the championship when she was aiming for third place behind Mercedes and Ferrari, she sees Red Bull, which she motorized until this year, sparking with her new Honda engine when she suffers from mechanical problems, related to the design of the chassis, or even pilots who make mistakes when they could aim for the podium.
- heavy burden -
It is precisely on the qualities of Ocon that Renault has in part to get out of this rut.
"Beyond his talent, his mission will be to let us enjoy his natural energy and envy exacerbated by a year without a race, it's up to us to put them in the new dynamic in which the team must enter," says Cyril Abiteboul, main team of the French team.
He does not hesitate to place a heavy burden on the young shoulders of the driver who has in all and for all only two full years of F1 on the circuits, to his credit.
Two years during which he showed a real ability to win in the pack at the price of overtaking often dared and poker shots that have earned him to finish twice 5th and 9th 6th during his short career.
And then, he also knows how to be intractable as he showed at the 2018 Brazil GP when in wanting to split he has properly released the Dutch prodigy Max Verstappen who led the race but did not want to let him go.
Far from excusing himself, he had after the arrival somewhat spurned a furious Verstappen who had suddenly pushed him by considering himself "provoked".
Esteban has not lost his temper at any moment. "To behave badly is not correct and it's not sporty, that's not the way to act," he said. Better to wait for his time ...
© 2019 AFP