Haas team principal Ayao Komatsu expressed pride in Esteban Ocon for taking full responsibility after colliding with Alpine's Franco Colapinto during the Chinese Grand Prix. Ocon apologized directly to his rival and accepted a stewards' penalty, despite facing online death threats. Colapinto recovered to score his first point with Alpine.
During lap 32 of the Chinese Grand Prix in Shanghai, Franco Colapinto pitted from eighth place for Alpine. As he rejoined the track, Esteban Ocon attempted a late dive inside into Turns 1-2, clipping Colapinto's car and sending both into a spin. Ocon received a 10-second penalty from the stewards and immediately acknowledged his error over team radio and post-race. He approached Colapinto afterward, saying, “I deserve the penalty. I was fighting with Franco the whole race, so that's clearly my fault on that last incident. I was a bit over-optimistic and the gap was not really there. I'm glad he still scored a point, because he drove a good race.” Colapinto recovered to finish 10th, securing his first point with Alpine, though he could have placed higher without the incident. Colapinto's management urged fans to remain “positive and respectful” and avoid hateful messages or death threats to Ocon. Despite this, Ocon faced a barrage of online abuse, including death threats, which he dismissed as actions from “keyboard warriors.” FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem sent Ocon a letter of support, highlighting the need to combat online hate in sport. Speaking in the Suzuka paddock ahead of the Japanese Grand Prix, Komatsu praised Ocon's conduct: “Esteban straight away accepted that was his mistake. He said it straight away in the car, straight away after the race, and he spoke to Franco. So, from our side, Esteban was 100% spot on. That's how I like to see our drivers behave. So I'm very proud of Esteban, how he's been behaving.” Ocon added that abuse online “should not be tolerated and it should have big consequences.” Haas enters the Japanese Grand Prix fourth in the constructors' standings, one point behind McLaren, in a tight midfield battle with Alpine and others.
