Esteban Ocon is seemingly being readied for a drive with Mercedes in 2020, with the Silver Arrows team placing him in different departments of the squad on each race weekend, so he can get a good feel of the team.
Ocon said he was with the strategy department on Sunday, and they got their strategy spot on as Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas finished first and second in Bahrain.
Bottas’ good early season form is perhaps the only thing in the way of Ocon getting a shot at the Mercedes seat, with the Finn’s place in the team looking like the only way in for the former Force India driver.
Ocon told Canal+: "I'm here to learn, I'm here all the time, I move in the garage, this weekend [Bahrain], I'm with the strategy department, the weekend before I was with Toto (Wolff).
"I'm going to change department a bit at every race so I can see how it's going from another point of view. I stay in touch."