Esteban Ocon has recounted how he experienced an “initial shock” when he first drove a Formula 1 car with a Ferrari engine during his debut outing with Haas.
Ocon is embarking on a new chapter in his career in 2025 having elected to bring an end his extensive association with Alpine prior to signing a multi-term deal with Haas.
Among the notable changes Ocon has had to adapt to since his move is the Ferrari powertrain compared to the Mercedes and Renault units that he’d been accustomed to.
The Frenchman has admitted that provided a surprise when he conducted his inaugural run with Haas in the squad’s 2024-spec VF-24 in the post-season test in Abu Dhabi.
But although he wouldn’t be drawn on the contrasts between the respective engines, Ocon highlighted that there are “positive” elements to the Italian marque’s powertrain.
“Yeah, of course there are differences,” Ocon told media including Motorsport Week during pre-season testing in Bahrain.
“I’m not going to comment about the differences itself, but there’s a lot of positives with the Ferrari power units and initially it’s a very different way of using all the systems.
“But we’ve simplified a lot and it now feels a lot more common to how I would have imagined to use it.
“It was a bit of a shock initially in Abu Dhabi, but on track, performance-wise, it’s working super well and it fits very well with the strength of the car as well. So, yeah, all good on that side.”
Sainz admits engine adaptation ‘the biggest change’
Carlos Sainz, who has also switched teams over the winter, revealed the Mercedes power unit is the “biggest change” that he has had to acclimatise to at Williams.
“Definitely the thing you feel the most when you change teams, the moment there’s a power unit involved, it’s the power unit,” the ex-Ferrari driver explained.
“The noises, the vibrations, the sound, everything just changes completely, so even if I went out on the pitch trying to understand the aerodynamics and the tyres and the feeling of the mechanical sides of the car, the only thing I could have to adapt for the first few laps was just how different a power unit can be.
“So yeah, that’s probably the biggest change, also the way the power unit operates in terms of switches, especially nowadays in Formula 1 with so much going on on our steering wheels, with the deployment, the battery, things like this, procedures, safety procedures of the engine and the power unit, it’s definitely the biggest change that I’m having to adapt so far in Williams.”
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