James Vowles is leading the Williams team for the second year, but before that he worked for Mercedes for a long time, where he was once responsible for the youth program, which at the time included Esteban Ocon.
Vowles therefore knows the French racer well and greatly values his professional qualities. Esteban’s association with Alpine F1 ends this year and there is no official information yet about where he will continue his career, although there are persistent rumours that Ocon will sign a contract with Haas. But for now, there remains a vacancy at Williams, and Vowles recently said that the list of possible candidates is gradually being narrowed down.
The Spanish newspaper Marca quotes Vowles’ opinion on Ocon, and in particular the head of Williams recalled that Fernando Alonso was Esteban’s partner in Alpine F1 in those two seasons, he was practically not inferior to the two-time world champion in speed.
“Esteban is a fast driver and his speed is at such a level that when he and Alonso were fighting for Alpine, they were about equal in qualifying,” Vowles stressed. – In my opinion, he should stay in Formula 1, regardless of what the critics say about him. I called him after the Monaco incident and we talked. I think the world as a whole is treating him too harshly.
As a rule, there is a very intense rivalry between him and his teammate, and at the same time, of course, there is always the possibility of some incidents.”
However, Vowles did not confirm that he had put Esteban Ocon on the candidate list for a place at Williams, although he has made no secret of the fact that Valtteri Bottas is on the shortlist.
Source: F1 News
I am Christopher Clyde, an experienced journalist and content writer with a passion for sports. I have been writing about Formula 1 news for the past five years and am currently employed as an author at athletistic.com, one of the top sports websites in the US.
