Ocon: "We hoped for more"

Esteban Ocon went level with his team mate after finishing in P9 at the Sochi Autodrom this afternoon for Force India.

The Frenchman, who is still without a drive for the 2019 season started the race in sixth position but fell back over the course of the race as the two red Bulls of Max Verstappen and Daniel Ricciardo blasted past from way down the grid.

Charles Leclerc also managed to get the better of Ocon, starting and finishing P7.

Ocon is one of the most talented young drivers on the grid yet finds himself staring at the likelihood of sitting out of the sport for a season as Lance Stroll looks set to take his seat at Racing Point Force India.

Therefore, Ocon is doing all he can to impress in the remaining Grands Prix of the season, which explains his disappointment at picking up just two points in Russia.

“Ninth place today is not too bad, but we hoped for more and I think we had the pace for more - certainly to be in front of the Haas.

“It’s a bit of a shame because the team swapped positions [with Sergio] to give us each a chance to attack Kevin [Magnussen] but it was very difficult to overtake, even with a longer DRS zone.

“Even at the start I lost out to Charles [Leclerc] because I was fighting with Kevin and ultimately it was one of those days when things didn’t really go in our favour.”