Ocon backs Camara’s F1 promotion but insists ‘I don’t deserve to be out’

Following last week’s confirmation that Rafael Camara will race for Haas in 2027, the team’s current drivers head into the United States Grand Prix with very different perspectives on the Brazilian’s arrival – although both believe he deserves his opportunity.

Esteban Ocon has known for some time that he will not be driving for Haas next season, with his focus now on securing a seat elsewhere.

Ocon remains confident that he has a future in F1, and a suggestion in Austin on Thursday that he could be making his final appearance at the venue prompted a clear response.

“Don't say that,” Ocon replied. “I'm coming here to do the best job I can, try and exploit the maximum amount of the car. As I said, I deserve to be here in F1.

“There are many circumstances why I'm not here next year, but they are not the performance reasons. I've won everything, in every category I've done – in go-karts, in Formula Renault, in F3, in GP3, in F1.

“In all these categories, I've won races. So, just thinking of a sports perspective, I deserve to be in F1. And yeah, I believe that this is not my last year.”

Asked whether those circumstances related to Haas opting for a Ferrari junior driver, the Frenchman added: “I can't say very much. What I will say is that Rafa deserves a shot in F1. I think he's shown in the [junior] categories that he's very good. But I don't deserve to be out of F1 at the same time. So that's it.”

Knowing that he's looking for a seat, Ocon would not be drawn on which other drivers he felt should make way on the 2027 grid.

“I'm not here to say who deserves [to go and] who doesn't,” the Frenchman said. “But just looking at the results, as I said, Rafa deserves a shot in F1 for sure.

“But I don't deserve to be out in the way that I've had at the moment. Of course, as I said I'm working on a solution for next year, and that's the main target to do well this weekend, and to do well in the next three.”

While Ollie Bearman has yet to be formally confirmed by Haas for 2027, Camara’s arrival presents a very different prospect for the Briton, with the pair having known each other for several years.

“It's funny because we joined Ferrari on the same day,” said Bearman. “We both signed at the same time, and I think we're like three or four days apart in in birthdays. So we can have a joint birthday party next year!

“But no, it's really cool. I think for him, he's been having a really good time in the junior formulas, and I think Haas is a great place to start your F1 career. It's a great team, welcoming, and probably quite different compared to other teams.

“I don't know how some of the other teams are where rookies tend to go, but I've really enjoyed the atmosphere here, and how passionate everybody is as well.”

Bearman will have significantly more F1 experience than Camara when the Brazilian arrives, giving him an opportunity to establish himself as a team leader.

“To be honest, I think I've shown that already,” the Briton added. “I think this year has been a big step for myself in terms of okay on track performance, but more importantly, how I deal with the team, how I transition into that role of leading the team. And I think I've seen a big step in how I deal with the team, but also how the team values my input and my feedback.

“It's definitely important to be cemented as the team leader by having more experience. It's not that I'm not already kind of working well towards that. I think this year has been a big step in that regard, and it's normal coming from F2 that it's not an instant transition, and takes time. But I would say that I've really come a long way in that regard.”

Their shared Ferrari links also mean comparisons between Bearman and Camara are likely to intensify in 2027, with both harbouring ambitions of eventually racing for the Scuderia.

“Of course,” said Bearman. “We're the same age. Obviously, Rafa has less experience than me in F1, but yeah, I guess that for Ferrari it's also a good thing to see who they want to put in their car in the medium term, and of course, my goal is to put myself in the best position for that to be me.”

Bearman may have the upper hand in terms of experience, but the opportunity is clearly there for Camara to ultimately get the nod. After all, Ferrari promoted Charles Leclerc to the works team after a single season at Sauber.

“It's all a question of timing, right?,” said Bearman. “Charles was there for one year. He had a very good year in Sauber that gave him that opportunity.

“In my case, things didn't work out like that. It's always a question of how timing looks, and yeah, that's the reality of F1.”