Esteban Ocon scared by F1 fan who found home and claimed he's 'my son'

Ocon during Abu Dhabi test — Photo: © IMAGO

F1 News & Gossip

Esteban Ocon scared by fan who found home and claimed he's 'my son'

Esteban Ocon's family had an unsettling experience with a fan

Chris Deeley Editor

Experienced sports writer covering F1 and other motorsports since 2023

Saturday 1 November 2025 20:58 Updated: 10:09

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F1 star Esteban Ocon has opened up on one of his most alarming interactions with a fan over the course of his career.

The relatively small number of F1 drivers means that everyone on the grid is easily recognisable to the vast majority of fans, which can lead to some situations which would be best avoided.

A number of drivers have talked about the issue in the past, with Lando Norris calling some online obsessives 'very creepy', and Ocon's experience in particular sounds completely unsettling.

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The Frenchman was speaking on YouTube channel 'Legend', where he praised most of his fans as 'very kind' before revealing one instance where someone had gone too far.

Ocon opens up on 'tricky situation'

“Once," he recalled, "a rather old man took a taxi because, in his eyes, I was like a son – just because I’d signed an autograph once. He took a taxi all the way from the south of France to Evreux [in Normandy], where my parents reside – he found their address.

“He rang the intercom; I was away and so were my parents, so my grandmother was alone. He asked my grandmother, ‘May I come in?’ My grandmother obviously said no, so the man got angry and said, ‘My son is about to get home’, referring to me.

“He had spent all his money on the taxi and didn’t really have anywhere to go. But we didn’t know that man, so this was a tricky situation. He ended up leaving, but that’s a bit scary, someone who finds your address like that.”

A stark reminder of the rules of interacting with celebrities. They aren't your friends, they don't owe you their time and, above all, just be normal about them. Maybe there's a new rule to add to that too – 'don't try to convince someone's granny to let you in their house'. Honestly, didn't think that one actually needed saying.

F1 Esteban Ocon