Who Is Rafael Camara, the Haas Driver Tipped To Replace Esteban Ocon for Remaining 2026 F1 Races?

Rafael Camara is reported to be in line to replace Esteban Ocon for the remainder of the 2026 F1 season following the Frenchman’s abrupt exit from the team at the Mexican Grand Prix. Camara was already confirmed to be taking over from Ocon in 2027, but could get his race seat earlier.

Camara, who hails from Recife, Brazil, is a Ferrari junior driver, currently competing in F2, Formula One’s feeder series. Driving for Invicta Racing, Camara is leading the championship by seven points with two rounds to go.

Prior to this, the Brazilian driver won the F3 championship in his debut season in 2025 and won the Formula Regional European Championship in 2024 before that. The youngster is also the reserve driver for both Ferrari and Haas F1 in 2026.

On October 15, Haas announced that Camara would join the team beginning in 2027, replacing the outgoing Ocon.

But as Ocon was benched midway through the Mexican Grand Prix this weekend, it was Japanese driver Ryo Hirakawa who got the nod to replace him as he was already in Mexico City, having driven in FP1 on Friday.

Rafael Camara Could Drive for Haas at the Upcoming Brazilian Grand Prix

Camara has a chance to make his F1 debut as early as next weekend’s Brazilian Grand Prix following Ocon’s exit from Haas in Mexico. Ocon is not expected to return for the remainder of the season following reports of an altercation between him and team principal Ayao Komatsu.

While Hirakawa has replaced Ocon for this weekend, the 32-year-old could be unavailable for next weekend given his commitments in the World Endurance Championship (WEC), where he is currently leading the drivers’ championship with Toyota. The WEC season-concluding 6 Hours of Monza race will take place on November 8, the same day as the Brazilian GP.

This could open the door for Camara, as the driver does not have an F2 race to be at next weekend. It would also be a profound moment for the Brazilian national to make his F1 debut in front of his home crowd at Interlagos.

The Haas team, which is yet to communicate a decision on the matter, could look to get a head start and bring in Camara five races early, given the Brazilian will be driving for them in 2027 anyway.

Rafael Camara Has Already Decided His Race Number Ahead of Haas Debut in 2027

Months before his planned F1 debut, Camara has already decided to race with number 50 for Haas in 2027. The rookie’s first choice was number five, but this is currently unavailable as it is being used by Gabriel Bortoleto.

“I think we’ll be using the number 50. The first option would be five, but obviously Gabi is using that,” said Rafael Camara.

“It’s 50 because basically my birthday is 05/05/2005. I spoke with my dad and then he said it’s 50, it makes sense with the birthday date, so I’ll be using that one for next year,” he added.

Interestingly, Hirakawa also used number 50 to make his F1 debut in Mexico this weekend. As per the FIA’s rules, Camara can only use this number if Hirakawa forfeits the number. In that case, Camara will be free to race with number 50 either in Brazil next week or next year.

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