Newly-crowned FIA European Formula 3 champion Esteban Ocon joins the list of drivers for this year’s global Race Of Champions on December 13 and 14 at Bushy Park.
The Frenchman, in his rookie season, took nine wins en route to the title before impressing in Formula 1 tests for both Scuderia Ferrari and Lotus F1 Team last month. He joins greats from Le Mans, IndyCar, NASCAR, V8 Supercar, Rallycross and F1 in the ROC field for the Barbados outing.
Along the way to the championship, Ocon defeated a wealth of driving talent including Max Verstappen, who has already been signed up to race in Formula 1 for Toro Rosso next year.
“It was my goal to win the FIA European F3 Championship in my first year and to achieve it is just fantastic. Now to come to the Race Of Champions (ROC) is a dream come true. When I was a kid I came to watch it at the Stade de France in 2006, so I’m really looking forward to seeing how everything works,” he added.
Ocon will partner reigning Champion of Champions Romain Grosjean for Team France in the ROC Nations Cup in a line-up featuring stars such as nine-time Le Mans 24 Hours winner Tom Kristensen, Indy 500 winner Ryan Hunter-Reay, NASCAR superstar Kurt Busch, Australian V8 Supercar legend Jamie Whincup, the Williams F1 development driver Susie Wolff, FIA World Rallycross Champion Petter Solberg and World Touring Car champion José-Maria López who are already confirmed for the ROC in Barbados.
Race of Champions organiser Fredrik Johnsson said the young Frenchman is one of the most exciting young talents in world motor sport and “we are intrigued to see how he gets on at this year’s Race Of Champions.
“We’ve had a long history of giving young chargers a chance to take on the legends and they often give the superstars a serious fright,” Johnsson added.
