Esteban Ocon frustrated in Melbourne: “Right from the start, we had a big performance gap.”

Finishing eleventh in the Australian Grand Prix, Esteban Ocon just missed out on the points after a race marked by numerous battles in the pack. The Haas driver particularly regrets a lack of performance and stability issues already encountered last season.

The battle for points was intense in Melbourne, but Esteban Ocon ultimately had to settle for eleventh place, just behind Pierre Gasly.

The Frenchman believes that his race was complicated from the very first laps, mainly due to a performance deficit. “Right from the start, we had a big performance deficit.”

This observation reminds him of the difficulties he already experienced last season. “In fact, it's exactly the same as last year, and that's what's so frustrating.”

Persistent stability issues

Ocon mentions, in particular, problems with the car's stability, which complicate its performance in races. “There are a lot of stability issues with the car, and a lot of differences in settings between the two cars. “

He considers this situation to be tiring for the team, even if the final result is not entirely negative. “It's frustrating… but we're not far from the points, and that's the good thing.”

According to him, the car has more potential than what was shown in Melbourne. “I think the car can perform better overall than what we are currently doing.”

Ocon's race was also marked by an intense duel with Pierre Gasly, with the two Frenchmen swapping positions several times in the pack.

However, these constant battles took their toll on energy levels. “We spent the race fighting and lost a lot of time in these battles.”

With the new cars and differences in engine management, overtaking was often followed by immediate counterattacks. “We were overtaking, we were being overtaken… that's all we did throughout the race.”

The two drivers even had a slight collision, with no particular consequences for Ocon's car. “Not much, honestly. The team didn't even see anything.” Objective: to improve in the next race

Despite this frustrating race, Ocon wants to quickly turn the page and focus on the adjustments that need to be made. to correct the stability issues and bring the performance of the two cars closer together. “The goal for the next race (in China next weekend, editor's note) is simply to have two cars at the same level.”

With the hierarchy still taking shape at the start of the season, Ocon hopes that these adjustments will enable the team to turn these near-points positions into concrete results in the upcoming races.