6/5/2024
Miami Grand Prix
Esteban started from P13 on New Mediums, finished P10
Pit Stops on Lap 22 for New Hards
Fastest Lap: 1min 32.037secs
Pierre started from P12 on New Mediums, finished P12
Pit Stops on Lap 12 for New Hards
Fastest Lap: 1min 32.055secs
Esteban Ocon: “It is good to score a point today and get off the mark for the season. In the past few races, we have been getting closer and finally this weekend we come away with a reward, which is what the team deserve given their efforts in recent weeks. It was a very intense race from start to finish, and good battles throughout. We cannot be fully satisfied with the result because it is only one point, but it is an important point for our season. From where we were in Bahrain on the last row, to where we are now - it is credit to the entire team at Enstone and Viry for keeping the belief and motivation and continuing to improve the car. Hopefully, it is going to be the first points of many for the rest of the season.”
Pierre Gasly: “We had a great race today even if we missed out on scoring points. We did everything we had to do in order to put ourselves in the best possible position to score points. We had good pace, we battled hard at the start to keep position and then, as with our plan, we pitted early. The VSC timing did not go in my favour but that is the way it is sometimes. From a team perspective, we scored the first point of the season and that’s most important. Whether it’s me or Esteban does not matter and I’m just really pleased for the team today. It’s great for motivation and confidence for everyone at Enstone and Viry. We need a lot more to fight for higher positions. We are in the mix, it’s been the best weekend of the season from a performance point of view, so it’s good to show progress.”
Bruno Famin, Team Principal: “It’s our first point of the season today, so from a sporting perspective, that is satisfying for us. We had a clear plan where one car would try to pit early and undercut the cars around us while the other car would take a gamble by running a longer first stint in hope of a VSC, SC or red flag scenario. On this occasion this is how it unfolded and it was Esteban who scored the point in tenth place. It was a faultless race from everyone in the team – strategy, race management, pit-stops - and we did enough to put ourselves in a position for the team to benefit. It’s been a much more positive weekend here in Miami and we must keep striving for more if we are to keep fighting for higher positions. The hard work will continue as we eye up returning to Europe next time out.”