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# Haas drops Ocon for rest of 2026 F1 season
- URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/haas-drops-ocon-for-rest-of-2026-f1-season/
- Published: 2026-11-03T20:45:13.000Z
- Updated: 2026-11-03T20:51:27.000Z
- Description: Esteban Ocon has been permanently dropped by Haas and will be replaced by Rafa Camara for Interlagos
- Author: Scott Mitchell-Malm
- Tags: Formula 1, #haas, #esteban-ocon, #primary_homepage_feature

Esteban Ocon has been permanently dropped by Haas for the remainder of the Formula 1 season and will be replaced by Rafa Camara for this weekend’s Brazilian Grand Prix.

Ocon was unexpectedly benched in the middle of last weekend’s Mexico event after a reported confrontation with team boss Ayao Komatsu on Friday after practice.

It was a sudden escalation in an increasingly tense relationship that was going to end this year anyway after Haas opted to replace Ocon with F2 title contender and Ferrari junior Camara in 2027.

That will now happen early, although Haas’s statement announcing the total split with Ocon only confirmed Camara for Brazil for now. Ryo Hirakawa had stepped in for Ocon initially in Mexico.

“We have now notified Esteban Ocon that he will not return to a race seat with TGR Haas F1 Team this season,” said Komatsu.

“Such decisions are never taken lightly, as was the case in Mexico City - but then, as now, we feel this is firmly in the best interests of the team moving forward.

“The conversations that ultimately unfolded between the team and Esteban remain an internal matter, and we will continue to respect the private nature of closed-door situations.”

## What unfolded in Mexico

There had been some frustration from Ocon over the radio during Mexico FP2, which lingered after the session.

It did not appear a major issue in isolation - Ocon complained repeatedly about being told he would do his longer high-fuel run on mediums, rather than softs, because of what the team had already observed on Ollie Bearman’s tyres.

But it came against the backdrop of Ocon’s impending exit and the internal clashes behind that, with Ocon feeling increasingly frustrated with Haas’s problems this year and a steadfast belief he has not been replaced for next season because of legitimate performance reasons.

Instead of moving on from unremarkable radio grumbling, an attempt to further discuss the matter on Friday evening led to a confrontation.

Ocon denies it resulted in physical violence, which some reports including one in French newspaper L’Equipe implied. Nobody at Haas will comment on exactly what occurred but it was serious enough to prompt immediate, draconian action as Ocon was dropped immediately.

The matter ended Friday evening, and Hirakawa was informed of the situation very early Saturday morning. Having driven in Friday’s FP1 as part of his main Haas programme, he told Japanese media it was 6.30am he received the call he would complete the weekend.

Haas focused on completing the rest of the Mexico weekend and helping Hirakawa handle a surprise F1 debut in very difficult circumstances, which was rewarded with an unexpected point.

Hirakawa passed the two Williams drivers late on after the restart, which was originally only for 13th on the road but ended up being for a potentially crucial 10th place in Haas’s constructors’ championship fight with Audi after penalties for three drivers ahead.

After the weekend, the dialogue between Haas and Ocon turned to what happens for the rest of the year.

Though Ocon would have surely wanted to try to make amends for whatever happened, it was serious enough that Haas clearly felt a line had been irreversibly crossed – so pressed on with removing Ocon from the seat permanently.