Here is the kind of wild paddock twist that stops you right in your tracks: as Motorsport.com reports, the Haas Formula 1 team has benched Esteban Ocon for the remainder of the Mexico Grand Prix weekend, installing reserve driver Ryo Hirakawa in his place.
That means Hirakawa will step up to partner Oliver Bearman through final practice, qualifying, and Sunday's 71-lap grand prix at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez, marking his Formula 1 race debut at the age of 32. He already spent Friday morning behind the wheel of Ocon's VF-26 for FP1, completing his third free practice outing of the season and finishing 15th overall.
Ocon actually returned to the cockpit for second practice, ending that session 13th, but his afternoon caused a stir following a public spat with race engineer Laura Mueller over a tyre strategy disagreement regarding softs versus mediums. Shortly after, the team confirmed the sudden swap with a brief statement noting that no further comments would be provided.
For Hirakawa, the breakthrough arrives after a decorated career spent largely in Japan—where he claimed the 2017 Super GT title—followed by success in the World Endurance Championship. He has secured two WEC titles with Toyota alongside an overall victory at the Le Mans 24 Hours, and that connection paved the way for his 2025 reserve role at Haas following a technical partnership between the teams. That alliance saw him contest seven FP1 sessions while contending for a 2027 race seat, though he ultimately missed out on that drive to Rafael Camara.
Meanwhile, this sudden benching bears a striking resemblance to how Ocon's time at Alpine concluded in 2024, when he was sidelined for the Abu Dhabi season finale in favor of his successor Jack Doohan. The 30-year-old Frenchman has endured a difficult stint since joining Haas in 2025, where he has been comfortably beaten by Bearman and is set to be replaced by Camara, with understanding pointing toward a move to become Aston Martin’s reserve driver in 2027.
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