Infuriated Max Verstappen once revealed that Esteban Ocon laughed at him and yelled to get the cameras after he shoved him after the race. Ocon tangled with Verstappen, which made the Dutchman lose the 2018 Brazilian Grand Prix race to Lewis Hamilton.
Talking about this, Verstappen shared that Ocon mocked him when he went to ask him the reason for his action. The Dutchman said he was calm and didn’t push him at first in the weighing room.
“get the cameras” gets me every time hes so messy pic.twitter.com/oi07Hyg0Ka
— ro (@summonhazard) March 28, 2023
But the then-Force India driver started to laugh at him, which the 25-year-old found inappropriate. When the Dutchman shoved him out of disbelief, the Frenchman yelled at him, “get the cameras,” and “push me, push me.”
The Red Bull driver received community service for the FIA as his penalty for the shove. Which, in fact, didn’t go down well with the two-time world champion back then, as he called it a bit strict.
Max Verstappen called Ocon an ‘Idiot”
As the race got over, Verstappen finished the Brazilian GP in P2, 1.4 seconds behind Hamilton. With this, he not only lost a chance to win the race but also failed to finish the season in P3 in the driver’s standings.
Talking to the media, the Dutchman was at a loss for words. After doing everything well, going through the field with a competitive car, he said he got taken out by “an idiot” Esteban Ocon.
Don’t play with max 😂😂.Max verstappen fights estaban ocon . Formula 1 Brazilian gp 2018 .🦁🦁 pic.twitter.com/BWmwNUzU9i
— PILAR🦁(RBR) (@F1pilar) October 17, 2022
Ocon, on the other hand, spoke to the media as well. He said that he was really surprised by the Red Bull driver’s behavior. The after-race antics from the Hasselt-born were not professional, he further stated.
Esteban Ocon confident enough to challenge Verstappen
The Frenchman once revealed that he has the ability to challenge the two-time world champion. He also believes that he can beat the Dutchman if given a chance.
He said he only needed a competitive car to compete against the Dutch pilot. If Alpine becomes competitive one day or he switches to the top teams, the 26-year-old believes he is very much up for the task.
Interestingly, Ocon beat Verstappen in the 2014 European Formula 3 Championship by 67 points. And it is believed that this is where the Alpine driver got all his confidence from.
