Esteban Ocon has highlighted his aspirations of winning an F1 title in the future, insisting he would not still be in F1 if he thought there was no chance of reaching such a position.
Ocon enters his 10th full-time season this year, and his second with Haas after joining the American squad last season.
The Frenchman endured a challenging opening campaign last term, notably suffering from a consistent brake issue which hampered his pace in the latter stages of the season.
Having not had a car to challenge for a title with during his career, Ocon is confident his chance will arrive.
“Yeah, otherwise I would not be here. I would not even participate at this stage of my career,” Ocon told the media, including RacingNews365. “That’s where I want to be in the future.
“It has happened for a lot of drivers that they arrive at the right place at the right time.
“If you look at 2023, I look at Canada, I look at all the early races in the season.
“I was fighting with Lando three races in a row, last lap battles for P6, P7. And here he is with a race-winning car.”
Haas enters the new F1 season in a title partnership with Toyota Gazoo Racing as fresh technical regulations come into play.
Ocon, who is waiting for the chance to return to the top step of the podium, insisted all his choices are focused on building to a future in which he can fight for the title.
“I think never give up, that’s the honest answer,” he said. “I’m here to fight for that in the future, definitely.
“Otherwise, why would I train so hard, put in so much effort to be here to fight for P10?
“That’s what we are doing at the moment. This is not really what the dream is all about.”
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