Ryo Hirakawa secured an unexpected maiden Formula 1 point for Haas as he made his series debut amidst a chaotic Mexico City Grand Prix.
The Japanese driver replaced Esteban Ocon after the Frenchman was benched following tensions within the American outfit. Having participated in the rookie FP1 session earlier in the weekend, Hirakawa had just two practice sessions before he prepared to live a childhood dream.
In a difficult race for Haas, Hirakawa delivered a solid performance, crossing the line in 13th place, becoming the sole finisher for the team, as Ollie Bearman retired late in the race.
Whilst Haas and Hirakawa were pleased with the result, their weekend took a positive turn. Following the race, a series of post-session penalties were handed out to his rivals. Ultimately, the 31-year-old climbed three positions in the final classification, securing the final points-paying position on his debut.
McLaren’s Oscar Piastri received a ten-second time penalty for his collision with Arvid Lindblad, seeing the Australian drop out of the points. Meanwhile, Franco Colapinto and Pierre Gasly failed to slow under yellow flags. This invoked respective penalties for the pair, stripping Alpine of the crucial five points it had collected in Mexico.
But disaster for one team was a dream for another. Haas, who endured a trialing weekend, secured an important point in their intense midfield battle.
Hirakawa reflects on F1 debut
Following the eventful race, before the promotion, the Japanese driver reflected on his debut performance, drawing differences from his time in the endurance categories to single-seater F1 racing.
“There were a lot of things to do today, especially around the start, and lap one – it was not easy, especially here going into Turn 1,” Hirakawa said.
“You’re thinking about braking points and you’ve got cars all around you, so I think I took too much margin because my focus was to finish the race as I wanted to learn.
Hirakawa explained that after his early stint of understanding, he tried to learn from his rivals throughout the field.
“After that, I was trying to learn from what others were doing, and maybe the first stint was tough, but I learned a lot.”
Hirakawa’s confidence grew as the race progressed, particularly following the Safety Car period, which allowed him to make greater use of the soft compound tyres.
“After the Safety Car, with the soft compound, I had more confidence and, after the last one, I had much more confidence and passed two cars, so I’m happy to finish like that.
“I need to digest this moment, I’m really happy as today was my dream, so I just want to enjoy this moment.”
It is yet to be confirmed whether Ocon will return next week for the Brazilian Grand Prix. But as Hirakawa has commitments in the WEC, Haas’ driver line-up could once more be up in the air.
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