Ocon: 'Then Formula 1 can surpass football'

Formula One is already one of the most popular sports in the world. With the arrival of the Netflix series Drive to Survive and the good work of Liberty Media, F1 only seems to be getting bigger. Esteban Ocon thinks Formula 1 can surpass football.

2021 was a season that really had everything going for it. A battle for the championship right up to the final round of the season, a new winner, the return of McLaren to the top step of the podium and much more. Ocon thinks that football could soon be overtaken by Formula 1.

Ocon says according to the Spanish MARCA that the last lap of 2021 summed up the whole season. He thinks Formula 1 is not done growing yet. "If we have the cars closer together, I think it can probably surpass football in terms of how interesting it is," he reveals.

The Frenchman was the most surprising winner of 2021. He won the chaotic Hungarian Grand Prix with Alpine and reflects back on 2017 and 2018. According to Ocon, in those years a sixth place felt just like a victory, because in those days in a team that normally drove in the midfield you had no chance of winning.

In his own circle of friends Ocon also notices changes. He says that some of his friends previously showed no interest in the sport, but now they don't miss any Grand Prix.