Esteban Ocon: “The DTM is helping me to grow as a driver”
Esteban Ocon is in his debut season in the Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters, being the only rookie on the grid this year. His appointment at Mercedes AMG came after reigning champion Pascal Wehrlein left the series in pursue of a career in Formula 1.
The Frenchman won the European Formula 3 and GP3 titles as a rookie in 2014 and 2015 respectively. As part of the Mercedes F1 Young Driver Programme, Ocon was moved by the manufacturer to the DTM for his next step.
Ocon, lined up in Team ART for the Stuttgart manufacturer, hasn’t scored any points so far, but has already had some good performances, being in the game with his team-mates.
“I’m having fun at the moment, as I think I’m being competitive and doing well”, Ocon told TouringCarTimes. “It’s good to understand the category and have the help from the people at ART, whom I know from before. It’s like being at home.”
With a racing career solely focussed on single-seaters prior to this season, moving to touring cars can be a challenge. Ocon believes that choosing the DTM was the best move for him: “I’m finding the DTM very interesting. Without a doubt, is the best step for me, definitely better than having gone for a GP2 programme”.
“The series is very professional, and you can find yourself in 15th place being just four tenths off the pace. The level of work, the PR and the relations with the team, the brand and key people are like being in Formula 1. Definitely, it’s helping me to be a better driver and more prepared than any other category”, said Ocon, who isn’t targeting a long term career in the series.
“My aim is to move to F1 next year, I don’t think I will win here, but I will continue to learn and try to fight for points and podiums. I still have got a lot to learn, but I’m happy about how it’s going so far” said the Frenchman.
Esteban Ocon will be back on track tomorrow morning at 8:50 CEST for the second free practice session.
