Esteban Ocon makes Max Verstappen F1 title challenge claim in dig to Sergio Perez

Esteban Ocon

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Ocon makes incredible Verstappen title challenge claim in sly dig to old rival Perez

Esteban Ocon has had his say on Max Verstappen's impending title in 2023 with the RB19 car

Dan McCarthy

Tuesday 20 June 2023 09:57

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Esteban Ocon claims he has the potential to become world champion if he had the RB19 car that is currently dominating the championship.

So far in 2023, Red Bull have won all eight races with Verstappen motoring away into the distance after a series of dominant drives.

He is 69 points clear of team-mate Sergio Perez at the top of the championship table with Red Bull having nearly double the points of Mercedes in second.

Red Bull and Verstappen have been unbeatable so far in 2023

Another procession is on the cards unless there is a significant drop off or improvement in performance from one of the other teams.

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Ocon is very confident in his belief that he could challenge Verstappen for the title if given an opportunity, an apparent subtle dig towards his old team-mate and nemesis Sergio Perez who currently occupies the secondary seat.

"Sure. I see myself fighting with Verstappen fighting for a world championship if we had the same car. Now Max is doing an incredible job, he is dominating with Red Bull", the Frenchman told DAZN.

Ocon determined to become a contender

Currently, Ocon is the team leader at Alpine having been joined in the summer by compatriot Pierre Gasly following his switch from AlphaTauri.

The 26-year-old has had a solid season so far, finishing in the points six times in eight races, including a podium finish at Monaco in May.

That is not enough to satisfy his ambitions though with the confident Ocon stating his title ambitions, though does add he is happy at Alpine and can sense progress being made.

He proclaimed: "I want to fight for the championship. I've always believed in myself. We have a long road ahead of us, but my goal is to be world champion, nothing more."

"I don't know what the future holds for me. At the moment I feel very good at Alpine. I feel we are making progress and I am fully confident," said the French Alpine driver.