Haas Team Principal Ayao Komatsu has shut down rumours of a fallout between himself and Esteban Ocon. The Team Principal blasted the reports as “absolute bull****”. Speculation circulated after the Miami Grand Prix earlier in May that there had been a disagreement between the French driver and his boss, and that there could be a possibility of Ocon exiting the team before the end of the season.
Ocon was quick to deny the reports during Thursday’s media day at the Canadian Grand Prix. He stated that “the stories have been fabricated with no foundation” – and this was echoed by Komatsu when he spoke to the press himself.
Komatsu’s Strong Denial of Ocon Disagreement
“I honestly don’t know where the story came from, no idea,” said Komatsu. “No foundation whatsoever, absolute bull****.”
Komatsu questioned the purpose of the rumours. “If somebody wants to write that kind of bull****, feel free, but is that journalism? I have no idea. It’s terrible. What are they trying to achieve? It’s crazy. No foundation whatsoever.”
Komatsu confirmed he spoke to Ocon after the rumours surfaced. “I spoke to him this morning, but for me there’s nothing to defend from our side whatsoever,” he stated. “It’s incredible. Part of it is that apparently I had some issue with Esteban in Miami – where’s that come from? I didn’t even have a single argument with Esteban in Miami.”
Impact of the Rumours on Ocon and His Team
Komatsu went on to detail how certain parties had been affected by the speculation.
“Esteban gets worried, his manager gets worried,” he explained. “Esteban knows that we haven’t had any argument in Miami, at least a specific thing. This morning we were just smiling and talking about what the f***’s that about.”
Komatsu reiterated his strong disagreement with the rumours. “So I said I’m going to just completely clarify this to everyone, because it’s absolute utter s***. Total bull****. It’s just something we don’t need.”
Haas Focus Shifts to Canadian Grand Prix Upgrade
Turning his attentions instead to the weekend ahead in Montreal, Komatsu confirmed that Haas will be running a “substantial” upgrade at the event.
- Haas will run a substantial upgrade at the Canadian Grand Prix.
- The team felt they didn’t have a good enough package to bring it to Miami.
- The extra week brought them time to develop further.
“Whether it’s going to translate into substantial performance or not, we have to see,” he added.
Komatsu hopes the upgrade will translate into improved performance. “We didn’t feel we had a good enough package to bring it to Miami, but that extra week brought us time to develop further. We’ll see tomorrow.”