An F1 star has been axed and will never race for his team again as a Ferrari driver comes in to replace him for the remainder of the 2026 F1 season

An F1 star has been axed by his team and will never race for them again as a Ferrari driver has been named as his replacement for the rest of the 2026 F1 season. The driver change will see the 21-year-old make his F1 debut in Brazil this weekend.

Haas have announced that Esteban Ocon has been dropped for the rest of the 2026 Formula 1 World Championship season.

The team have additionally confirmed that Rafael Camara will line up alongside Ollie Bearman for this weekend's Sao Paulo Grand Prix, stepping in to replace Ocon.

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In an official statement released on Tuesday evening, Haas wrote: "TGR Haas F1 Team can confirm that Esteban Ocon will no longer compete on its behalf in the 2026 FIA Formula 1 World Championship.

"Rafael Camara will now partner Ollie Bearman in the team at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix. Rafael will make his Formula 1 debut on home-soil this year having last month been announced as one of TGR Haas F1 Team's full-time driver signings for the 2027 FIA Formula 1 World Championship."

Haas team principal Ayao Komatsu shed light on the reasoning behind the call to swap Ocon for Camara.

"Such decisions are never made lightly, as was the case in Mexico City - but then, as now, we feel this is firmly in the best interest of the team moving forward.

"The conversations that ultimately unfolded between the team and Esteban remain an internal matter. And we will continue to respect the private nature of closed-door situations."

Ocon was dropped by Haas for the Mexico City Grand Prix just hours before qualifying on Saturday despite taking part in Friday’s practice session.

He was replaced by reserve driver Ryo Hirakawa for the remainder of the weekend, who went on to score points on his F1 debut.