Ocon claims he could have reached the podium in Canada

Esteban Ocon believes he had the pace to make it onto the podium in yesterday's Canadian Grand Prix. The Frenchman finished the race in sixth place but ran in the train that led up to the podium for much of the race.

Daniel Ricciardo sat in third followed by the two Force India's of Sergio Perez and on. Ocon requested to be let through to try and attack Ricciardo, but Perez didn't budge. Sebastian Vettel then closed up behind and overtook the two pink panthers.

Despite the frustration of being denied the attempt, Ocon is happy that the team came away with a bundle of points and is confident that he will be in a similar position to fight in the future. 

"As a team, we scored really important points today, but I am a bit frustrated by this result because I feel a podium may have been possible. This is the way racing goes and we have to look at the positives: we had a great car that allowed us to take the fight to Ferrari and Red Bull and that is quite impressive.

"I am confident it won’t be the last time we will fight at this level and it was an awesome feeling – a really enjoyable race. The team as a whole did a great job today - they gave me such a fast car and we can be proud of our work and of the points we have gained."

Fergal Walsh