Photo: Erik Junius

“I can’t wait to attack this one”: Ocon optimistic after Monaco podium

Esteban Ocon is looking to build on his podium from Monaco when he takes to the track in Spain this weekend. The Frenchman finished in the top three for the third time in his career last Sunday, when he crossed the line behind Max Verstappen and Fernando Alonso. However, with every team upgrading and changing their cars throughout the season, he isn’t making any predictions for this race yet:

“We’re going to give it all to be able to reproduce it here (a podium), that’s for sure. We’re not here just to participate.

“It’s going to be a good test for us exactly, to evaluate where we are after putting these updates on the car. And I think there’s no better track to see where the car is exactly than here.”

When asked about his previous podium in Hungary, he felt he had a similar experience reaching the top three at both the Hungaroring in 2021 and Monaco last week. However, he is still looking for his next victory:

“I think getting a very, very good lap in Qualifying was obviously more key in Monaco than in Budapest.

“But I also had a very good weekend in Budapest on the Saturday and we were very competitive. But I would say, you know, it’s not a win, so it doesn’t taste as good. But obviously, it’s been a while since I’ve been on the podium, and getting it on pure merit that time to have that podium, it’s something special.”

Like ex-teammate Alonso and Ferrari driver Carlos Sainz, Ocon has Spanish relatives who will cheer him on in Barcelona in Round Eight. Although the Alpine driver races under a French license, he is excited to be racing in Spain:

“I have a lot of family that live around the circuit and my grandparents are Spanish, so for me it’s almost two weekends of home races, or very close. So yeah, it feels good to come here and ready to attack the weekend. Obviously we are coming from a very good one. So yeah, I can’t wait to attack this one.”

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