Esteban Ocon received a late call-up to the Sahara Force India team to test their VJM08 at the Circuit de Catalunya when Pascal Wehrlein pulled out through illness, but the young Frenchman put in an impressive performance on Wednesday.
The 2014 FIA European Formula 3 Champion completed 94 laps of the Spanish circuit, setting a best time of 1m27.520s that put him sixth fastest of the nine cars testing, with the former Lotus Junior Team driver happy to have had the opportunity to test.
“I was very happy to get the opportunity to drive today and I’m pleased with how things went,” said Ocon, who is racing for the ART Grand Prix team in the GP3 Series in 2015.
“It’s always good to get more experience in a Formula One car and I’ve learned a huge amount about this car and this team.
“We worked on a lot of things – mainly on the aero side and we completed most of the things we had planned. The team has given me some good feedback and I improved during the day – step by step with each run.
“I hope I get another chance to drive a Formula One car soon.”
