The information is lastly out that Esteban Ocon will depart Haas on the finish of the 2026 Method 1 marketing campaign following a disappointing time with the American outfit.
He joined for 2025 and contemplating his then eight seasons of expertise, together with 4 podiums and a victory in Hungary, Ocon was seen as an actual coup for Haas.
The Frenchman grew to become its first grand prix-winning driver and, lining up alongside rookie Oliver Bearman, Ocon was within the excellent place to guide that workforce ahead into the brand new laws.
Nevertheless it simply hasn’t labored out. Scoring simply 45 factors to Bearman’s 61 of their 18 months collectively, whereas being constantly outperformed by the 21-year-old, has led to this information that was lengthy anticipated.
Ocon’s substitute is but to be confirmed although, so who’re 5 drivers that would function Bearman’s team-mate at Haas in 2027?
Leonardo Fornaroli
Leonardo Fornaroli, McLaren, Will Joseph, Director of Race Engineering, McLaren
Picture by: Steven Tee / LAT Pictures by way of Getty Pictures
Leonardo Fornaroli is certainly one of two clear favourites for the second Haas seat in 2027. The 21-year-old Italian is one more Method 2 graduate to have been pressured to sit down on the sidelines for an F1 workforce instantly after a title-winning marketing campaign, having served as McLaren’s take a look at driver in 2026.
However Fornaroli has definitely shined on the British marque together with his growth work behind the scenes, whereas additionally showing in free apply periods at Barcelona and Budapest – impressing on the former, taking fifth and simply half a second off Oscar Piastri.
“It’s a really deserved alternative,” beamed McLaren workforce boss Andrea Stella in Spain. “We’ve got labored with Leonardo for some months now. We’ve got appreciated massively his angle as an individual and as a driver.
“He’s truly a really fascinating character. He appears to be like timid, however by far he’s probably the most proactive driver in asking the engineers, he goes round together with his pocket book, takes a number of notes and as quickly as he has an thought, he shares it.”
So Fornaroli is certainly seen as one to observe throughout the paddock and may an F1 alternative not come up for him, there’ll undoubtedly be probabilities for McLaren to position him inside both its IndyCar or World Endurance Championship tasks.
However F1 remains to be the purpose, and understandably so after being a part of an unique membership to have received the F3 and F2 crowns back-to-back. In F3 he achieved the title regardless of not profitable a race, however as an alternative centered on consistency – an extremely onerous factor to perform within the junior classes – earlier than carrying that over into F2 final season.
“Leonardo is definitely an asset for Method 1 sooner or later,” mentioned Stella. And that may simply be the place Haas suits into the equation, notably as Fornaroli accomplished a two-day TPC programme for the squad at Jerez in June.
No matter occurs, McLaren is eager to retain management over the Italian, in contrast to former junior driver Gabriel Bortoleto who was lower unfastened to hitch Audi, making Fornaroli out there to Haas on a mortgage deal if the workforce needs to take up the provide.
Ryo Hirakawa
Ryo Hirakawa, Haas F1 Workforce storage
Picture by: Guido De Bortoli / LAT Pictures by way of Getty Pictures
Arguably probably the most easy possibility could be for Haas to advertise its reserve driver Ryo Hirakawa right into a full-time seat. The 32-year-old joined the operation in 2025 – following stints with McLaren and Alpine – due to his sturdy ties with Toyota, who’s a present associate and title sponsor of Haas, offering design, technical and manufacturing providers.
In opposition to fashionable perception, Hirakawa additionally has loads of single-seater expertise with 4 wins and a runner-up championship end throughout 9 seasons of Tremendous Method in his native Japan. He has additionally carried out numerous TPC programmes for Haas, received the 2012 Japanese Method 3 Championship and did three seasons of Method Problem Japan.
However hardly any of that’s at a world stage and there may be no denying that the sportscar scene is his bread and butter, having taken the 2017 Tremendous GT title, a victory at Le Mans and the 2022 and 2023 WEC crowns, whereas additionally at present main the 2026 standings with Toyota.
So it could nonetheless be a left-field possibility and with him two years outdated than Ocon, selling Hirakawa may be seen as an odd alternative by Haas. However he has nonetheless impressed the workforce and may he depart WEC, it’s understood that Toyota would signal its junior Esteban Masson – not the opposite Esteban in Esteban Ocon!
Yuki Tsunoda
Picture by: Simon Galloway / LAT Pictures by way of Getty Pictures
Hirakawa is just not the one Japanese driver that Haas may very well be contemplating, as Yuki Tsunoda is looking for a seat for the 2027 F1 marketing campaign. The 26-year-old was as soon as thought of a part of the furnishings after 4 seasons at Workforce Faenza – underneath its numerous guises – the place to his credit score, he did a strong job, having outperformed team-mates like Daniel Ricciardo and Nyck de Vries.
The one concern was that Crimson Bull’s sister workforce is just not a long-term house for anyone and so both a promotion to the primary squad or wanting elsewhere have been his solely choices. Finally, Tsunoda acquired that promotion at the beginning of 2025 – due to Liam Lawson performing poorly – however he grew to become one other driver to wrestle alongside Max Verstappen by ending seventeenth in final yr’s standings in comparison with second for the world champion.
So Tsunoda was dropped and compelled right into a reserve driver position at Crimson Bull for 2026, with Isack Hadjar taking his seat and performing valiantly alongside Verstappen. It seemed as if Tsunoda’s F1 profession was due to this fact achieved and talks about an IndyCar transfer emerged, till he was just lately given one closing alternative to place himself within the store window.
That got here after an damage for Hadjar, so Lawson took his seat at Crimson Bull whereas Tsunoda crammed the void at Racing Bulls for the Dutch, Italian and Spanish grands prix. The Japanese driver carried out nicely, taking a degree at Monza and narrowly lacking out at Zandvoort, so he seemed like a model of his former self and was little doubt happy by his performances.
“I’m tremendous blissful, I loved this qualifying a lot,” mentioned Tsunoda after taking twelfth on Saturday at Zandvoort. “I missed this sort of feeling, chasing the previous couple of milliseconds. I used to be in a position to get used to it sooner than I anticipated.”
The next day noticed the Japanese driver with 114 grand prix begins make a determined plea for F1 groups to “name me”, together with his choices for 2027 nonetheless up within the air. Though on paper Haas could also be an possibility, Tsunoda remains to be affiliated with Toyota rival Honda and that’s prone to be one thing which holds him again on this event.
Is it value switching allegiances, which might have long-term profession penalties, for what could be a single season of Haas? Though Honda acquired him into F1, sarcastically it would simply be what stops him from returning full-time.
Liam Lawson
Liam Lawson
Picture by: Marc Fleury
One might simply record all of the Crimson Bull graduates at this level, however Lawson is arguably at a bizarre crossroads in his profession. The 24-year-old made his F1 debut for Workforce Faenza in 2023, changing the injured Ricciardo, instantly impressed, however then didn’t return till the ultimate eight rounds of 2024 earlier than beginning his first, full marketing campaign in 2025.
The issue is, 2025 noticed him begin the opening two grands prix at Crimson Bull however he was utterly off the tempo, so acquired moved again right down to the sister squad the place he has been ever since. Historical past dictates that, until it’s distinctive circumstances like what occurred just lately, Crimson Bull by no means re-promotes certainly one of its drivers which implies that Lawson’s choices are Racing Bulls or elsewhere.
What makes it difficult is that, whereas F1 is now seeing the most effective of the Kiwi who’s ninth within the standings with a career-best 59 factors, Racing Bulls is the chief of the midfield. But it’s a squad that no person needs to remain at, so if he have been to depart for Haas, he’d be happening the pecking order.
However with Nikola Tsolov – second within the F2 standings – ready within the wings, and Lawson’s team-mate being the spectacular teenage rookie Arvid Lindblad, Crimson Bull has a choice to make. It’s doubtless that Lawson will stay for 2027 earlier than analysing what his choices are, however he might soar the gun and resolve that changing Ocon at Haas is his finest wager for the long run.
Rafael Camara
Rafael Camara, Invicta Racing
Picture by: Dom Gibbons / Method 1 by way of Getty Pictures
Regardless of the whole lot that’s been talked about, it’s onerous to not see Ocon’s substitute being the present F2 chief Rafael Camara. The 21-year-old has just lately emerged because the clear favorite for that seat – and it’s straightforward to see why, with the Brazilian atop of the F2 standings, following up his F3 title-winning marketing campaign in advantageous style.
And in contrast to Fornaroli, Camara additionally took the F3 title in his rookie season whereas the Italian did it as a sophomore, ending eleventh the season prior. So on uncooked expertise, Camara arguably edges it, having received titles at each stage and in 2026 he appears to be like set to make it three on the bounce after taking the 2024 Method Regional European Championship.
This has very a lot been a breakthrough yr for him although and qualifying is the place he’s impressed probably the most, taking 5 poles, which is probably the most for a rookie since Piastri achieved that very same quantity in 2021. Camara might due to this fact surpass the now nine-time grand prix winner with two rounds left – Qatar and Abu Dhabi – within the present season the place, ought to they go forward amid the Center Japanese battle, the Invicta driver will arrive with a seven-point cushion over Tsolov.
Camara has proven immense capabilities to adapt to a brand new class straight away – in F3 he took pole in 4 of the opening 5 rounds – and that’s clearly one thing that’s wanted for F1, notably when he’s but to look in a apply outing.
What additionally offers him the sting over Fornaroli is that the Brazilian is an academy graduate of Ferrari – Haas’ present engine provider – and Ferrari is thought to be eager for Camara to fit in alongside its different junior Bearman. The teen can be understood to have impressed mightily on a current TPC take a look at in Portimao.
Bearman versus Camara in an audition to in the future change Lewis Hamilton, anyone?
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