Formula 1: Will Esteban Ocon drive for Williams in 2019?

Is current Force India driver Esteban Ocon a potential candidate to drive for Williams Racing in the 2019 Formula 1 season?

Esteban Ocon has confirmed that he will not be returning to Racing Point Force India in the 2019 Formula 1 season. While the team’s driver lineup has not been confirmed for next year, it is likely that it will consist of Sergio Perez and current Williams Martini Racing driver Lance Stroll.

Perez’s backers were the ones who sent Force India into administration to protect them from the threat of a winding-up offer. This allowed Canadian billionaire investor Lawrence Stroll to lead a consortium and purchase the team.

As a result, expect Perez to be back with the team for the sixth consecutive season, and expect him to be joined by Stroll’s son Lance, who has spent each of his first two seasons driving for Williams.

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With Stroll’s departure from Williams, this left a seat open at the Grove-based team. It was recently confirmed that ART Grand Prix Formula 2 driver George Russell, who is a member of the Mercedes driver development program, is set to be the replacement for the 19-year-old Canadian next year.

Williams’ other driver is rookie Sergey Sirotkin, who has underperformed in his first Formula 1 season to say the very least. He has scored just one point through the season’s first 17 races as a result of his 10th place finish in the Italian Grand Prix.

It has not yet been confirmed as to whether or not the 23-year-old Russian will return to the team in the 2019 season, and there are rumors that he could be replaced by Williams reserve driver Robert Kubica, who he beat out for the team’s second seat this year largely due to his substantial financial backing from SMP Racing.

But is Ocon, who has driven for Force India since the start of the 2017 season after making his Formula 1 debut in the 2016 season driving for Manor Racing MRT, also still a candidate to drive for Williams in the 2019 season even though his chances of landing a ride for next year appeared to take a huge hit when the team signed Russell?

Here is what Williams team boss Claire Williams had to say about the potential of signing the 22-year-old Frenchman, who is also a member of the Mercedes driver development program, for next season, according to Sky Sports.

"“We are still doing a lot of evaluation work. It’s a short short-list. We’re very happy with the drivers we are evaluating and it will not take us a long time to make that final decision. Of course Esteban is in the mix. We would be crazy not to be looking at him.”"

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Will Esteban Ocon end up being George Russell’s teammate at Williams in the 2019 Formula 1 season, or will the team sign someone else and leave the talented Frenchman without a ride? With the 2018 season winding down, we should know the answer to this question in the very near future.

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