Rafael Camara received a baptism of fire, or water, during his Formula 1 debut at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix.

Camara replaced Esteban Ocon for his home race in Brazil after Haas abruptly sacked the Frenchman. He was taken out of the car in Mexico after a confrontation with team principal, Ayao Komatsu.

Esteban Ocon fans mock Rafael Camara’s F1 debut

Camara impeded Charles Leclerc in FP2, before he crashed during qualifying on Saturday. However, he made it through to Q2 and qualified 13th.

Thanks to grid penalties, the Brazilian was promoted to P11, giving him the chance to potentially score points. Ryo Hirakawa finished P10 and scored a point in Ocon’s place in Mexico.

However, Camara could not emulate Hirakawa, as he struggled immensely in the tricky conditions. He ultimately finished P20, last on the road, and two laps down.

Following the race, Ocon fans flooded Haas’ official social media accounts to mock the team’s decision to replace the Frenchman with Camara.

On X (formerly Twitter), one fan posted a GIF saying: “Haasteban Ghostcon is haunting you.” Another said: “You deserved it,” with another GIF of Ocon.

One user brutally wrote: “Sponsor’s money don’t mean much if you’re not F1 material. Camara doesn’t belong there, it’s just as simple as that.”

Another said: “Missing that Estebrazil Ocon,” referencing his P2 finish in the wet in Sao Paulo with Alpine in 2024.

“It was probably the toughest weekend he could have faced. But I think he handled it very well,” said the Frenchman via UOL.

Audi chief Allan McNish also praised Camara, saying: “I think making your debut mid-season is difficult. And debuting in the middle of a race weekend, right at your home Grand Prix – maybe that’s the ideal scenario in your mind, in your heart.

“But actually, maybe Bahrain is a better option. To be quite frank. And on top of that, with a crazy race. So it was difficult in all conditions. And for all the drivers – both the experienced ones and, needless to say, a rookie.”