Esteban Ocon had seat fitting at rival F1 team before closing in on Haas move

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The world of Formula 1 is patiently waiting for another piece of the 2025 driver puzzle to be put into place before the summer break.

There are only six seats left to fill ahead of next season, although the uncertainty surrounding the two Red Bull teams could increase that number in the next few weeks.

Haas have already signed Oliver Bearman for next year, partly thanks to their partnership with Ferrari but also because Bearman has been very impressive during his limited Formula 1 outings.

It’s expected that Bearman will be joined at Haas next year by Esteban Ocon.

Ocon has already confirmed that he’ll be leaving his current team Alpine at the end of the year after a five-year partnership.

Mercedes sources have all but confirmed his move to Haas although in the world of F1, nothing is official until both driver and team announce the move, just ask Oscar Piastri about how his relationship with Alpine ended.

However, Sky Sports journalist Craig Slater has suggested that Ocon might have been closer than some expected to joining one of Haas’s rivals next year.

With so many teams exploring their options in the driver’s market, it’s not a surprise that Ocon was on the shortlist of several teams.

Ocon is still attached to Mercedes and was a candidate for Toto Wolff’s team at one point in the year, however, they now have a shortlist that doesn’t contain the Frenchman.

Instead, Ocon was one of the frontrunners to potentially join Alex Albon at Williams next year.

Despite having a seat fitting with the British team, the 27-year-old won’t be joining the team next year and talk of Ocon replacing Logan Sargeant during the mid-season break appears to be wide of the mark.

READ MORE: Alpine driver Esteban Ocon’s life outside F1 from net worth to girlfriend

Esteban Ocon had ‘a kind of’ seat fitting at Williams before choosing Haas for 2025

Talking about the Frenchman’s future, Slater said: “I think we could well see Esteban Ocon confirmed as a Haas driver this weekend.

“A little change in status I think it marks for the Haas team that for the first time they will have a race winner driving for them.

“Quite a few speculations about Ocon and what he might be up doing before the end of this season, some people suggesting that he might even drop in at Williams after the summer break replacing Logan Sargeant.

“I understand there’s no foundation in that prospect even though Ocon did have a kind of a seat fitting at Williams some weeks ago but my understanding is that was just to establish whether he would be a potential candidate at that team next year.

“It was a preliminary check before they fully evaluated whether he might be someone who could go alongside Alex Albon at that team.”

READ MORE: Everything you need to know about Williams Racing from team principal to Mercedes relationship

Haas going from strength to strength after disastrous 2023 F1 season

Very few Formula 1 fans would have expected Haas to be in the position they’re currently in at the conclusion of the 2023 season.

Kevin Magnussen and Nico Hulkenberg couldn’t prevent Haas from finishing bottom of the Constructors’ Championship and team principal Guenther Steiner didn’t have his contract extended when it expired in January.

Ayao Komatsu has turned Haas around in that time and now they’re competing firmly in the midfield.

Not only that, despite being the smallest team on the grid, they’re understanding their updates much better than their rivals which is seeing them climb up the standings.

Oliver Bearman is a very exciting prospect and should quickly improve during his rookie season next year.

Esteban Ocon looks like another impressive hire if Haas can get him over the line and with half the teams on the grid still deciding their line-ups, it gives the American manufacturer a small head start over their rivals.