Esteban Ocon: Lies about Haas fallout affected my family and sponsors

The Frenchman arrived in Montreal under growing scrutiny after reports surfaced following the Miami Grand Prix suggesting tensions had erupted inside Haas and that Ocon could even leave the team before the end of the 2026 Formula 1 season.

The timing came during a difficult opening stretch for Ocon, who has scored just 1 point so far this year, while teammate Ollie Bearman has emerged as one of the standout midfield performers with 17 points already on the board.

But ahead of the Canadian Grand Prix, Ocon shut the rumours down emphatically while defending his relationship with Komatsu, a figure he says remains central to his Haas project.

“The stories have been fabricated with no foundation. There were no real sources in there. I've joined this team because of Ayao, because I've known him for so long,” declared Ocon to reporters.

“He's been my first race engineer in F1 and he's going to set the record straight later in the media. There was no dispute in Miami but when I read the article that kicked it all off, they call him Ryo Komatsu, so as soon as I read that I stopped reading.”

The comments continue a recurring pattern around Haas this season, with the American team attracting increasing attention as it pushes through another major rebuilding phase under Komatsu’s leadership. Earlier reports surrounding the VF 26 programme highlighted Haas’ aggressive development approach and willingness to delay upgrades in favour of larger performance steps later in the season.

That strategy now comes under the spotlight in Montreal, where Haas introduces an important update package after a difficult Miami weekend.

While Ocon rejected the claims outright, he admitted the situation affected him more deeply than many may have realised: “At the end of the day, I'm human, so when it escalates so much and when there is so much going on it affects my sponsors, my family, it affects everyone that is around me.

“It's not normal that you can fabricate stories like this and just get away with not having any problems for yourself. You can't just lie about things, said the Frenchman, and also stressed that internal confidence inside Haas has not changed despite the external noise surrounding the team and his performances.

“I've never faced that in F1 before. The important thing is the job we are doing inside the team and as long as Ayao is happy with that, and seeing that I'm putting the work in, and that we will deliver the result when they come, that's the most important.”

Haas will split specifications across its two cars during the Canadian weekend as it evaluates the effectiveness of the new package. Bearman will run the upgrades from the start of the event, while Ocon will switch to the new specification after the Sprint ahead of Qualifying.

“I'm looking forward to seeing what this is going to bring us and hopefully it's going to help us to get back into the top 10,” added Ocon. “Because Miami was a little bit difficult for us.”

Haas F1 Team hope the changes can pull Haas back into the fight for regular points finishes after slipping behind several midfield rivals in recent races.
(Additional Reporting by Agnes Carlier in Montreal)