Ocon replaces Bottas in 2020?
Esteban Ocon's chances of returning to the Formula 1 grid next year stand at "100 per cent".
That is the claim of Matthew Carter, the former chief executive of the now defunct Lotus team.
Frenchman Ocon had to sit out 2019 as Mercedes' reserve driver, having lost his Force India seat. Toto Wolff slammed Renault for supposedly reneging on a deal to accommodate Ocon this season.
"Esteban 100 per cent was supposed to go to Renault," Carter told the Missed Apex podcast.
"100 per cent I heard that he will be racing next year. I heard from sources that he will be driving at Mercedes next year," he added.
If true, that would be bad news for Valtteri Bottas, whose current Mercedes contract is for one year only.
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No way will Mercedes lose Bottas now, he is a proven winner and is as good as Hamilton on his day. Ocon has always been a second string driver and if he came into the Mercedes team would be running round in 5th or 6th and not fighting for a win like Bottas
Your argument is not without some merit.
On the other hand, if Mercedes is to stay in the programme for another 5 or more years, which they have indicated, replacing Bottas with Occon may be a strategy. Lewis is 34 and Bottas 29.
Bringing in a driver in his very early twenties will ensure continuity of a promising driver.
I think the teams are starting to realise that this musical chairs driver strategy every season is backfiring. Red Bull is starting to realise that and are desperately latching onto Verstappen having treated other drivers like s****t, notably so Kvyat, Hartley, and Gasly and to some extent Ricciardo.
If he has another season like last year then without a doubt he's on his way. The only way he'll catch Hamilton. That together with his age will count against him
I don' think anyone with even a quarter of a functioning brain needs an "insider" to work this one out for us. This was a done deal - if not ACTUALLY SIGNED - before this season even began testing. Woolf's plan was obviously to have him drive for Renault for a season, and so long as he didn't totally screwit up, to move to Mercedes for 2020. All that has changed is that he's not at Renault this year - 2020 is still the same plan as it was.
I do not believe it. Valtteri Bottas is going to be replaced by Esteban Ocon next year. i say your counting your chickens before there atched. Bottas is a lot better than Ocon. Mercedes will not be whare they are now, this time next year. keep Valtteri Bottas.
Toto being so magnanimous in his hiring of Ocon this season must then have a similar heartfelt plan for Bottas if he is ousted in 2020? Perhaps he'll go back to Williams as part of their new contract extension with Mercedes? The WC runner ups thanks for helping win the constructors championship for Merc. Wouldn't Toto look like a star then eh? Ferrari is already talking to Bottas.
That's some source of information and from a team point of view I can see it makes business sense. Move Ocon in so as he can learn with Hamilton for two years. By then Lewis will have at least matched Schumacher. Then, when he walks away move George Russell into the team and they will have two very fast, experienced and Young drivers! Then, if they choose to walk away from F1 they will be consistent until the end. Job done Toto - and then he can go run F1 with who ever owns the sport by then.
Sounds like a plan!