Haas replace Esteban Ocon with Ryo Hirakawa for rest of Mexico City GP weekend

Haas announced that Ryo Hirakawa will replace Esteban Ocon for the rest of the Mexico City Grand Prix weekend. Multiple outlets reported that Ocon will not take any further part in the event.

Hirakawa is due to drive alongside Oliver Bearman in final practice, qualifying and Sunday’s race. Autosport also reported that Hirakawa had already driven Ocon’s car in Friday’s first practice session as part of the rookie-session requirement.

Several reports described the switch as a surprise, and Crash.net reported that Ocon had been involved in a dispute with his Haas race engineer on Friday. Other coverage included reaction and analysis around Haas’ decision, but the confirmed outcome is that Hirakawa will race in Ocon’s place in Mexico.