Haas leave Singapore without points as Bearman and Ocon finish 12th and 13th

Haas left the Singapore Grand Prix without points on Sunday night, with Ollie Bearman 12th and Esteban Ocon 13th at Marina Bay.

Bearman started 11th and Ocon 12th. They traded places on the opening lap before Bearman moved ahead. Bearman said he had been a little boxed in at the start; team principal Ayao Komatsu said Haas had been boxed in and lost a position. Ocon described his own start and first couple of laps as good. A few laps later, Bearman passed Carlos Sainz and Ocon followed soon after, putting the Haas pair 10th and 11th.

George Russell passed Ocon on lap 23, sending him to 12th. Komatsu said Haas had decent pace in the first stint but could not make use of it.

Ocon stopped for medium tyres on lap 28 and returned to the track in 12th, but lost a place to Isack Hadjar. Bearman stopped for mediums on lap 33 and dropped to 11th; Russell partly benefited from a Virtual Safety Car when he made his stop a few laps later. Hadjar later passed Bearman as well. Komatsu said Haas lacked the speed in the second stint to get back into points contention.

The drivers’ assessments diverged. Bearman said overtaking was difficult, although he felt Haas had pace and was still a little behind the point-scoring positions. He was happy with the car and the race execution, felt he had driven well, and said the team needed a couple more tenths per lap. Ocon said pace was lacking after the opening phase and that he had no grip and was sliding.

Haas remained seventh in the constructors’ championship on 30 points. Komatsu praised the team’s execution and said the pit crew had responded well to a late call for Bearman to stop. He hoped the Singapore lessons would help Haas take another step forward in Austin.