SUMMARY
- Max Verstappen and Esteban Ocon have been battling each other since their childhood years.
- Their relationship took an ugly turn in 2018 when Ocon attempted to unlap himself at Brazilian GP.
As we all know, Max Verstappen is known for his aggressive driving style on the track. The three-time World Champion has had many accidents on the race tracks since the start of this career. Verstappen has had many rivals in his career including the Frenchman, Esteban Ocon.
The two drivers are of similar age and have competed against each other since their Go-Karting days. They also competed in the FIA European Formula 3 Championship in 2014, with Ocon winning the title while Verstappen ended the year in third.
Max Verstappen and Esteban Ocon’s incident
During the 2018 Brazilian Grand Prix, a clash between Max Verstappen and Esteban Ocon took place which rekindled the feud between the pair. Esteban was looking to unlap himself by overtaking the race leader, Verstappen, around the first corner.
However, as always, Verstappen was never going to give it away easily, subsequently triggering a nail-biting battle between the duo. Ocon tried to push Verstappen by holding the corner and crashed into the side of the Red Bull car, causing Verstappen to spin off the track and eventually lose his first position to Lewis Hamilton.
LAP 43/71
OCON HITS VERSTAPPEN! 😱
Esteban tries to unlap himself on his former F3 rival but spins out the race leader in the process! Verstappen drops to second…#BrazilGP 🇧🇷 #F1 pic.twitter.com/qPj4Gnetld
— Formula 1 (@F1) November 11, 2018
Furious, Verstappen bad-mouthed the Frenchman on the radio and also later went on to the drivers’ weighing room and got into a physical altercation with Ocon during an argument. “We were at the scales room,” said Ocon.
“He wanted to punch me. He pushed me and he was wanting to be violent. It was not professional.” Ocon added that his rivalry with Verstappen “goes back a few years,” and said he “has always been the same. I’m used to the fights with Max. He’s always been the same. It goes back a few years.”
A video after the incident surfaced on the web in which Verstappen could be seen having an argument with the Frenchman and pushing him while arguing. Verstappen said that he had no regrets while Esteban was given a 10-second stop-go penalty by the race stewards for causing the collision.
Esteban Ocon and Max Verstappen’s relationship
Esteban said in a recent interview that he and Verstappen are closer than they appear with their families being close to one another as well. Esteban stated “The media push it massively, “We have a lot more in common than what you guys think. We had a very close background with our families.
“I have big respect for Max. He has for me as well. “My dad was not an F1 driver, but how we were at the races with his dad, you know, preparing everything and his family being very close and mine as well.”
It seems that both drivers have respect for each other on and off the track. Despite the heated arguments on the tracks, the drivers share a sweet and cordial relationship. This can be seen when the Dutch came to rescue Esteban with his Champagne in Monte Carlo.
