Esteban Ocon fondly remembers the first time he met Haas Team Principal Ayao Komatsu
Image Via Getty Images
Haas driver
Esteban Ocon
has been fondly reflecting on the first time he met his current team principal,
Ayao Komatsu
, whom he had once raced alongside and who he called the most competitive guy he had ever met. Ocon, fondly nicknamed 'Estie Bestie', agreed to join Haas last summer on a multi-year contract, thus reuniting him with
Komatsu
, whom he had once raced side by side on a 12-hour endurance race with F1 teams taking part.
Esteban Ocon raced alongside Ayao Komatsu in an endurance race
The Moneygram
Haas F1 team
has put on a commendable performance so far in the 2025 season, with experienced driver Esteban Ocon and talented rookie
Ollie Bearman
at the helm of the operation. The teammates stare at an eclectic bond, with the young Ollie putting rainbow sprinkles on Ocon's protein shakes, which delights the older driver, a welcome change to former teammate Fernando Alonso pouring salt in the same.
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by Taboola
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The tallest duo in the entire grid has been expertly guided by team principal Ayao Komatsu, who assumed the role after replacing a mass favorite,
Guenther Steiner
, back in January 2024. The Japanese engineer has steered the team effectively since his competitive nature was fondly confirmed by Ocon on a Beyond the Grid podcast.
'I went there with him and there was like a 12-hour endurance race with F1 teams just taking part,' Ocon recalled. 'Ayao was there and racing, and I was part of the
Lotus team
. That was the first time we met. We were team mates. I was probably 35 kilos at the time, so I was very fast in the go-kart. I remember he was the only one who came to me and said: 'Esteban, how do you take this corner? Do you take a little bit the kerb to prepare the next one?'
'And that will stick forever because I was much quicker than everyone in that corner, and no one really asked me how they could do it. But he was the one coming and asking me to try and gain something out of it,' Ocon said.
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On being asked if Komatsu has changed much since, Ocon responded that he might be 'the most competitive guy' he has ever met. 'I think we share that together', Ocon said, all smiles.
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