Haas enjoyed a perfect strategy in Canada and came away with two points, but the lack of top speed, especially in qualifying, is a cause for concern
Haas achieved another important success in the Formula 1 race in Canada and overtook its rival Racing Bulls in the championship again. Thanks to Esteban Ocon’s ninth place, the American racing team is now back in sixth place in the Constructors’ Championship.
The Frenchman perfectly executed Haas’ strategy in Montreal and was rewarded for his efforts. Ocon had completed a long first stint on hard tires and only came in for a pit stop on lap 58 of 70.
In doing so, he had built up such a big lead that he returned to the track in tenth place ahead of Franco Colapinto’s Alpine before later being gifted another position by Lando Norris.
“That was perfect execution,” he praised the team. “I had a clear track ahead of me. It was clear that things were looking good – I was able to consistently set good lap times and improve little things in the handling from lap to lap. You never know where you’ll come out after a pit stop, but when I came in and saw where I was, I thought: Yes, that was a good stint.”
Ocon emphasizes that he was able to exploit the car’s potential on Sunday, even though he had to fight a bit on the hard tires at the start. “We also had to keep an eye on the tires at the same time, and that’s not easy,” he says.
A great way to mark Race 200 A deserved reward for the whole team HaasF1 F1 CanadianGP pic.twitter.com/m4FXTduzGD
— MoneyGram Haas F1 Team (@HaasF1Team) June 15, 2025
“Nevertheless, we made it through and I’m very happy that we were able to score two points. Another very positive aspect is that our race pace was very strong – as strong as Williams’ or even better. We now need to work on our one-lap pace, because we are significantly stronger in the race than in qualifying.”
That was also the case in Canada. Although Ocon and teammate Oliver Bearman both made it through Q1, they finished last in Q2.
Problems with speed
Haas would lose a lot there, especially on the long straights: “It looks like the others are using something different on the straights. Especially in qualifying, the others are significantly faster on the straights, and that’s exactly where we lose out,” says Ocon.
“In race trim, this difference disappears – or at least becomes smaller. It doesn’t disappear completely, but it does decrease, and we’re getting closer. We definitely need to work on our qualifying pace, but we’re much stronger in the race than over a single lap.”
Ocon was lucky: he didn’t have to rely on overtaking competitors with his poor top speed in the race. Instead, he drove consistently on clear tracks and returned to the track ahead of his competitors after switching to medium tires.
The reward was ninth place and two important points in the battle for sixth place in the World Championship. Unsurprisingly, the mood in the team is very good, according to Ocon. “Everyone is working hard and everyone is very happy when we get a good result like today,” he said. “It’s fun to work with the team and we are building an increasingly close relationship.”
“They know what I need, and I know what they expect from me. Things are going well.”
Poor practice sessions somewhat worrying
For the Frenchman, Canada was his fourth top-10 finish of the season. On Friday, it looked as though Haas would have serious problems in Montreal. But that’s a trend we’ve seen quite a bit this season.
“To be honest, it’s a bit worrying,” said Ocon. “When we start the weekend and are so far behind, it’s unclear why that is. But one thing is certain: this weekend, we improved the car step by step in every session. So we’re heading in the right direction.”
Incidentally, this is not due to the simulation tools: “No, we prepared well in the simulator, also with the team,” he dismisses. “The car felt pretty good in FT1. But the further the weekend progresses, the better the performance gets. We definitely need to take a closer look at that.”
