Haas share more information on sudden Esteban Ocon withdrawal

The reason Esteban Ocon is missing the rest of this weekend's Mexico City Grand Prix is not because of illness, Haas has confirmed.

The American team has not stated the cause of Ocon's withdrawal at the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez and has no plans to make any further announcements at this time.

Multiple drivers have needed to miss press duties over the weekend thus far due to illness, with Kimi Antonelli and Valtteri Bottas being excused from media day.

Sergio Perez, celebrating his 300th grand prix start in front of his home crowd, was also permitted to be absent from his own press obligations on Saturday.

Therefore, it was pertinent to establish that Ocon is not also sick.

The Frenchman has been replaced by reserve driver Ryo Hirakawa for the remainder of the round, starting with FP3. The 32-year-old rookie has taken part in numerous FP1 sessions before, including earlier in the weekend, in place of Ocon.

The one-time grand prix winner will not continue with the Ayao Komatsu-led squad in 2027, after two years at the team.

Given the partnership is ending, there have been suggestions of internal tensions between Ocon and Haas, but it is unclear if his unexpected withdrawal is a result of that relationship further breaking down or if it is because of a different reason, like a family matter.

This is not the first time Ocon has missed a round. In 2024, he left his previous team, Alpine, before the campaign finale in a deal that allowed him to join Haas early and participate in the post-season test in Abu Dhabi.

Jack Doohan replaced him then. Although the Australian is also a Haas reserve driver, it is Hirakawa who has got the nod to partner Ollie Bearman for the rest of the weekend in Mexico.