Ryō Hirakawa set to replace Esteban Ocon for remainder of Mexico City Grand Prix weekend
Haas announced that Esteban Ocon has withdrawn from the remainder of the Mexico City Grand Prix weekend. Reserve driver Ryō Hirakawa will replace him.
Haas announced that their reserve driver, Ryō Hirakawa, will replace Esteban Ocon for the remainder of the Mexico City Grand Prix weekend.
The 32-year-old Ryō Hirakawa will make his Formula One race debut this weekend. He will drive the VF-26 alongside Oliver Bearman in the final practice and qualifying session on Saturday, as well as the 71-lap race on Sunday.
Hirakawa already participated in FP1 this weekend at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez. The Japanese driver finished 15th overall in his third free practice outing for Haas this season.
In their statement, Haas gave no comment as to why Ocon has withdrawn from the remainder of the race weekend. They said that no further statement will be made at this time.
Ryō Hirakawa joined Haas as a reserve driver in 2025, after holding similar roles at McLaren and Alpine. He is a Toyota Factory driver in endurance racing, and has won the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2022, as well as the World Endurance Championship in 2022 and 2023.
Article written by Jana Van Nieuwenborgh
