Why Ocon ‘might need to take a good shower’ after yellow flag frustration in Baku Qualifying

It was a classic case of mixed emotions for Haas drivers Esteban Ocon and Ollie Bearman after a tight Qualifying session in Baku.

Both men were fighting for a place in Q3, a sign of much improved form, and both were left disappointed as they missed out.

However, while Bearman saw a glass half full and called the upswing in form “invigorating”, his team mate was left fuming after his final Q2 run was spoiled by a yellow flag.

Ocon’s frustration was perhaps not surprising given that at times this season Haas have been fighting to get out of Q1, and on a weekend when the package was clearly stronger than it’s been for a while, the pieces didn’t fall into place.

Throw in his clear hint on Wednesday as a “free agent” that he could be out of a job for next year and it’s understandable that he saw a missed opportunity.

Having been P12 in Friday’s FP3 session, Ocon was an encouraging P10 in Q1 which indicated that progression to Q3 was on the cards. However, he didn’t get a clean lap at the end of Q2, and found himself stuck in P14.

“Unbelievable,” he said. “We were on for a Q3 lap, the car was working well. We don't have many chances like this when the car is working well. It hasn’t been working throughout the whole season. We improved things, but we had a Q3 car today.

“And the yellow flag, basically. I got a gust of wind the lap before, but I was on for a Q3 lap as well, and then I did the same lap time again, arriving to Turn 15. I don’t know who went off, but I had to back off on the exit to make sure that I was not going to get any penalty.

“And yeah, I did exactly the same lap time, so I lost what, three, four tenths, with that? Unbelievable. I just have no words.”

It’s not been an easy season for the Frenchman, who has often struggled with the VF-26, and been hampered at times by inconsistencies in aero parts.

“It’s a different race weekend, same s***,” he said. “It’s always something going on on my side, if it’s either the car, if it's something else, now yellow flag, Safety Cars, whatever.

“But I don’t deserve all the s*** I have on my back at the moment. So, I don’t know. I might need to take a good shower...”

Asked if, as a top 10 contender, the car was the best he’d had all year, he said: “I mean, yes, but I think we’re very far from where it should be.

“We need to fight in the top 10 tomorrow now, because we are 14th, so we’re not in the top 10. At the end of the day, yes, we were competitive, but we can’t get there. Never – it’s never happening.”

It was also a frustrating Q2 session for Bearman. He was in the top 10 when he completed his final run earlier than most, but was then bumped out by others who ran later. He ended up in P11.

“We did it quite early,” he said. “I caught the yellow flag on my final lap, and I was doing the same lap time, but I also had a better track position, I had a better slipstream, so maybe I would have had a bit more lap time in it.

“But for me, the tyres were their best a bit earlier in the session on Lap 2, when I did my lap.

“So, it’s one of those things. What can we do? It hurts because, of course, it’s been a really good weekend considering that I didn’t run yesterday in FP2, and all of those things mean that actually I think we’re doing very well considering everything.

“It always hurts – but today a little bit more. But the only consolation is that I think tomorrow there can be some good opportunities on a track like this.”

Despite his disappointment, Bearman saw the positives in the pace of the car. “I think it’s an invigorating feeling,” he said. “And as much as it really sucks to be knocked out, the fact that we’re even considering to be in Q3 means that we’re doing something right.

“And the car has been strong since Monza, since we brought the update. It’s incredibly strong in low-speed as well. It’s just a shame that we lose so much on the straights.”