Ocon’s Haas future in doubt as McLaren-backed rising star joins battle for Formula 1 seat – Esteban Ocon’s future at Haas has been thrown into doubt following fresh reports suggesting the Frenchman could lose his F1 seat after just two seasons with the American outfit.
While Haas has yet to confirm its 2027 driver line-up, speculation is growing that the team is evaluating multiple young talents, including McLaren-backed Leonardo Fornaroli and Ferrari academy prospect Rafael Câmara.
According to GPblog, Ocon’s position is increasingly uncertain despite joining Haas with significant experience. Meanwhile, GBblog has reported that the 29-year-old could be replaced at the end of the current campaign, although Haas team principal Ayao Komatsu has declined to comment publicly on the speculation during the Hungarian Grand Prix weekend.
Ocon linked with early Haas departure
Ocon arrived at Haas to provide leadership and experience as the team looked to strengthen its midfield position. However, reports now suggest his stay could end after only two years if Haas opts to invest in younger talent for the future.
Neither Haas nor Komatsu has confirmed that a decision has been made, leaving Ocon’s future unresolved as the 2026 season continues.
Former Haas team principal Guenther Steiner added further fuel to the speculation during an appearance on The Red Flags Podcast, where he said he believes Ocon will ultimately lose his seat.
While the reports remain unconfirmed, they have intensified discussion over Haas’ long-term plans and the role Ferrari could play in shaping the team’s future driver line-up.
Oliver Bearman expected to remain
In contrast, Oliver Bearman appears well placed to continue with Haas into next season.
The British driver remains closely tied to Ferrari through the Ferrari Driver Academy, having joined the programme in 2022. Haas has effectively become part of Ferrari’s development pathway, giving young drivers valuable Formula 1 experience before a potential move to the Scuderia.
Bearman has impressed during his second full campaign with Haas and is widely viewed as a long-term Ferrari prospect, particularly with Lewis Hamilton approaching the latter stages of his Formula 1 career.
That relationship makes Bearman’s continuation at Haas appear significantly more likely than Ocon’s, should Ferrari wish to continue his development before any future promotion.
Rafael Câmara and Leonardo Fornaroli emerge as contenders
If Haas does make a change, two highly-rated young drivers have emerged as leading candidates.
Former Haas boss Guenther Steiner identified Formula 2 driver Rafael Câmara as one of the favourites. The Brazilian is also a member of the Ferrari Driver Academy, making him a logical option if Ferrari retains strong influence over Haas’ second seat.
However, GPblog reports that another name has now entered the conversation.
Leonardo Fornaroli’s management is reportedly working to position the Italian for a Haas opportunity. The 21-year-old joined McLaren as a test and development driver in 2025 after winning the Formula 3 championship in 2024 and following that success with the Formula 2 title in 2025.
According to the report, McLaren would be open to placing Fornaroli at Haas in a similar arrangement to Ferrari’s use of the team as a proving ground for its academy drivers. Such a move would allow the highly-rated Italian to gain Formula 1 race experience before potentially returning to McLaren in the future.
For now, Haas has made no official announcement regarding its 2027 driver line-up. But with experienced campaigner Esteban Ocon facing growing speculation over his future and several championship-winning youngsters waiting for an opportunity, the American team’s driver market is becoming one of the most intriguing stories to watch as the season progresses.
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Thiago Treze is a Brazilian motorsport writer at TJ13 with a background in sports journalism and broadcast media, alongside an academic foundation in engineering with a focus on Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD). This combination of technical knowledge and editorial experience allows Thiago to approach Formula 1 from both a performance and narrative perspective.
At TJ13, Treze covers driver performance, career developments, and key storylines across the Formula 1 grid, while also analysing the technical factors that influence competitiveness. This includes aerodynamic development trends, simulation-driven design approaches, and the engineering decisions that shape race weekend outcomes.
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Firstly, Haas has a technical partnership with both Ferrari & Toyota, which means that only Ferrari & Toyota-affiliated drivers can drive in this team on loan; hence, Fornaroli would have to end his McLaren association altogether, just like Bortoleto for his Audi switch.
Even more importantly, what’s totally ignored is the fact that Camara is all but confirmed to replace Ocon, as reported by a journalist named Alessio Auriemma, who’s actually the very first to report about Lindblad’s eventual Vcarb drive last July in an exclusive article, & he wrote a similar exclusive about Camara earlier this month, so not a mere coincidence, but an effective pre-announcement, since he proved with his Lindblad exclusive that he’s reliable for reporting about driver moves in advance, not to mention AMuS has only mentioned Camara in Haas context as Ocon’s direct successor.