MEXICO CITY – Esteban Ocon denied “any form of physical violence” had led to him being sidelined by the Haas Formula 1 team on Oct 31 and replaced by Japanese reserve driver Ryo Hirakawa for the Mexico City Grand Prix.

A team spokesman said the decision to switch drivers was not due to any illness but gave no further details.

French media and paddock sources reported an alleged altercation with team boss Ayao Komatsu after Oct 30’s practice but Ocon, a past race winner with the Renault-owned Alpine team, took to X to address “speculation”.

“Last night, a difference in viewpoints led to a discussion with the parties involved. While I acknowledge that this took place, I categorically reject any reports or allegations suggesting that any form of physical violence was used to resolve any differences of any nature.

“I strongly condemn violence in all its forms and firmly believe that disagreements should always be handled with professionalism, respect and mutual understanding. I kindly ask that speculation be avoided while the matter is being addressed.”

Ocon, 30, had been due to leave Haas at the end of the season, with Brazilian Rafael Camara moving up from Formula 2 for 2027, and his prospects of finding another race seat look unlikely with only two vacancies possible and clear candidates for them.

Hirakawa, 32, is a two-time world endurance champion and Le Mans 24 Hours winner with Toyota, which have a technical partnership with Ferrari-powered Haas.

The Japanese qualified 18th for what will be his first Formula 1 race.

“I’m just very happy for the opportunity. I’ve always been ready for it and finally I can do it. I can perform for tomorrow, so yeah, I’m excited for that,” Hirakawa said.

Komatsu had spoken out on Oct 30 about past media reports that he and Ocon had argued at the Miami GP in May.

“Some people invent the story. You know, what happened in Miami, about apparently I had an argument with Esteban Ocon? That’s just absolutely zero truth in there,” he said. “Even those people claiming that they had some insider information, etcetera, absolute total nonsense.”

A tetchy radio exchange between Ocon and his race engineer Laura Mueller in Oct 30’s second practice in Mexico was highlighted by some, with the driver complaining about the team’s tyre strategy.

“No, no. I wanted the soft. Don’t do that to me. Come on,” said Ocon.

Haas have 30 points from 18 races before the Mexico race with Britain’s Ollie Bearman scoring 23 of those.

The next race after Mexico is the Brazilian GP in Sao Paulo, a home round for Camara who leads the F2 championship but has no commitments until the final rounds in Qatar and Abu Dhabi at the end of November and early December.

Haas also have Australian Jack Doohan, a former Alpine race driver, as a reserve.

In related news, Liam Lawson will start the Mexico race from last place after his Racing Bulls car was found to be in breach of the technical rules after qualifying on Oct 31.

The New Zealander had already been handed a one-place grid drop from eighth to ninth after colliding with Red Bull’s Max Verstappen in practice.

Lawson also apologised to four-time world champion Verstappen, who was given a one-place penalty from fourth to fifth for his part in the collision.

“I went to see Max this morning to apologise. Obviously, it was never my intention to make contact,” Lawson told reporters before his disqualification.

“Obviously, for both of us, it’s not good, so yeah, I’ll learn from it going forward.”

Lewis Hamilton will start from pole, his first for Ferrari, with Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli fourth on the grid for a ground-breaking race likely to make the 20-year-old Formula 1’s youngest champion.

Antonelli needs only a ninth-place finish to become Italy’s first champion since 1953.

The pole was a record-extending 105th of Hamilton’s stellar career, and was his first since Hungary in July 2023 when he was at Mercedes – a wait of 1,197 days. REUTERS