F1 News
Ocon: You can understand why Lewis Hamilton is so successful
- Bobby Vincent
Esteban Ocon was unfortunately left without a seat in Formula 1 this season, following an impressive spell with Force India, but the Frenchman was brought in as a reserve driver by Mercedes - allowing him to work closely with Lewis Hamilton so far this campaign.
Ocon has admitted that he can now understand why the five-time world champion is so successful, following his close collaboration with Hamilton this season. Hamilton has won five out of the seven races so far this season, as himself and Mercedes have enjoyed a splendid start to the term.
"You can understand why Lewis is always so successful, and why he has won so many titles, and that is not a coincedence," Ocon said, as cited by Motorsport-total.
"He works hard on the track and asks the right questions. If there is something interesting, he immediately picks it up and speaks to it. I did not know him so well before, and now I have a very different picture of him than before.
"If you succeed, there are reasons for it, and it's at his peak right now."
Despite Mercedes' dominant start to the season, that saw the Silver Arrows pick up five one-two finishes in the opening five grands prix of the season, Ocon has admitted it is "harder than it looks" for the reigning champions.
"It's a much bigger challenge (than it looks)," Ocon claimed. "It looks like we're always in control; but that's not always the case. It's never easy to win - as a team or a driver."