The Case For Bottas To Stay At Mercedes & Ocon To Renault F1 2020

The Case Against Esteban Ocon To Replace Valterri Bottas At  Mercedes F1 2020

Esteben Ocon has been out of Formula 1 for a full year now but Toto Wolff has hinted that he is securing a drive for the young French star who was ousted from his seat by Lance Stroll of Racing Point. Stroll’s father is a Canadien billionaire who funded the bleeding F1 team and in exchange also placed his son in the cockpit. It’s not the most egregious case of nepotism we’ve seen in sports – Lance still is a quick, capable driver but his path to an F1 seat is just a bit different than most on the grid to put it conservatively.

According to Autobild, Ocon has progressed in his talks with Renault and links are starting to form between the French driver and the French mega manufacturer. But would that actually be the best move for Mercedes? In this article, I’ve included feature length original content for you to check out as well as an infographic presentation you can download that I reference throughout the content.

1. Ocon Will NOT Beat Lewis (Anymore Than Valterri)

This comes down to do you think Ocon is a future world champion? I do not. I think Mercedes & Toto would be making a huge mistake blinded by the allure of options that they fail to see precisely what’s in front of them. Valterri is a world-class driver who is near even with Lewis on poles and is getting his share of points. It would be tough to make the case that Ocon could be doing better than Valterri. Check out the Mercedes mid-season review made for you showing how Mercedes is nearly perfect.

2. Mercedes Want The Constructor’s Title

Don’t fix what’s not broken – I think as the decision to replace Valtteri begins to surface more and more, this idiom will rattle in his head loudly. Mercedes isn’t broken, so why change? That’s not to say never change when you are seeing results. Sometimes it’s strategically powerful to anticipate changes and set yourself up to win. But with major regulation changes coming in 2021 and Lewis set to break Michael Schumacher record of 7 drive titles, it’s likely the silver arrows will ultimately settle in and ride out this year and next year to have a near perfect era.

3. Renault Need Ocon More

Cyril Abiteboul, Team Principal for Renault Sport F1 team, has proven himself a talented negotiator and clearly is able to get things done as a skilled business operator. Look no further than Daniel Ricciardo’s major move from Red Bull Racing to Renault on a two year deal. Knowing that the French manufacturer is looking for a switch to young, fresh talent, Ocon seems like the perfect fit and it’s been proven Cyril will do what he must for his team, board, and country. I believe Renault want Ocon more than Mercedes do. I also believe Mercedes is looking for any decent chance to hand off Ocon and get him a drive for 2020. The driver pool is bright for them and should our prediction come true, it would also be a sign that they are hopeful for a major pick up of a mega star like Verstappen or they could be making room for George Russell. Either way, Renault’s cross hairs will come into focus more and more as the summer goes on and likely will lead to inevitable acquisition of Ocon’s driving services for the 2020 season.

Infographic Gallery Slideshow (4 slides)