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GASLY Pierre fra, Alpine F1 Team A523, portrait OCON Esteban fra, Alpine F1 Team A523, portrait during the Formula 1 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix 2023, 1st round of the 2023 FIA Formula One World Championship, WM, Weltmeisterschaft from March 2 to 5, 2023 on the Bahrain International Circuit, in Sakhir, Bahrain – F1 – BAHRAIN GRAND PRIX 2023 – RACE DPPI/Panoramic PUBLICATIONxNOTxINxFRAxITAxBEL 03323001__R3_0374
via Imago
GASLY Pierre fra, Alpine F1 Team A523, portrait OCON Esteban fra, Alpine F1 Team A523, portrait during the Formula 1 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix 2023, 1st round of the 2023 FIA Formula One World Championship, WM, Weltmeisterschaft from March 2 to 5, 2023 on the Bahrain International Circuit, in Sakhir, Bahrain – F1 – BAHRAIN GRAND PRIX 2023 – RACE DPPI/Panoramic PUBLICATIONxNOTxINxFRAxITAxBEL 03323001__R3_0374
Esteban Ocon collided with his teammate Pierre Gasly on the first lap of the Monaco GP. Subsequently, Alpine team principal Bruno Famin addressed the incident as he told reporters in Monaco that Ocon would face “appropriate consequences“, which some interpreted as the French driver being dropped for the ninth race of the season. Though Ocon will still be racing in Canada, he won’t be racing for the team next year. Understand why this happened as F1 Experts dissect Esteban Ocon’s exit from Alpine and his future.
Esteban Ocon and constructor Alpine agreed to part ways at the end of the 2024 season. The French constructor and the French driver announced the same on Monday in a statement. Subsequently, there has been a lot of speculation as to what the future holds for Ocon. The hosts of the Sky Sports F1 podcast discussed Esteban Ocon’s “mentality” considering this season with 16 races still left. Will he pay the team game “even less” now?
via Imago
L: Pierre Gasly, R: Esteban Ocon
Image Courtesy: Imago
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David Croft said,
“I think that there’s been a lot going on behind the scenes. I think that it’s as much as about probably he wants to free himself from this as Alpine wants to free themselves from him. He has been talking to other teams, so you know it’s not that we’re going to lose Esteban Ocon from F1. I hope we don’t. There is potential out there for him and he certainly is on the shortlist at Haas along with a number of other drivers as well but he’s talking up other series and that didn’t come as much of a surprise as well when we went into the press conference. It’s a bit of a giveaway, isn’t it?”Taking into account Ocon’s turbulent past with his teammate, Crofty added,
“I think what’s quite interesting is he’s still got 16 races left this season. Especially if he’s still got a point to prove and I wonder if he’s going to play the team game even less than he perhaps already has.”Despite all the conjectures, Esteban Ocon looked back at his half-a-decade-long spell in gratitude.
Esteban Ocon reflects on his association with Alpine
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In 2018, Esteban Ocon found himself out of an F1 seat as he was replaced by Lance Stroll. He had to spend a year on the bench for Mercedes to be recruited by Alpine later. He then spent five years at the French outfit Renault-Alpine. However, Ocon’s association with the Enstone-based team goes way back and despite their parting ways, the 27-year-old driver expressed his gratitude, also stating his plans will be announced in due course.
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31 Esteban Ocon FRA, BWT Alpine F1 Team, F1 Grand Prix of Belgium at Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps on July 27, 2023 in Spa-Francorchamps, Belgium. Photo by HOCH ZWEI Spa-Francorchamps Belgium *** 31 Esteban Ocon FRA, BWT Alpine F1 Team , F1 Grand Prix of Belgium at Circuit de Spa Francorchamps on July 27, 2023 in Spa Francorchamps, Belgium Photo by HOCH ZWEI Spa Francorchamps Belgium
In a heartfelt statement, Ocon reflected on his time with Alpine: “It’s been a significant period of my life to be racing at this team in Formula 1. While I’ve been here for five years as a full-time racing driver, my professional career started at Enstone back when I was a teenager, so it will always be a special place for me.”
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Ocon expressed gratitude for the support and experiences he has had with the team and hinted at plans that are yet to be disclosed. “We have had some great moments together, some tough moments as well, and I am certainly grateful to everyone in the team for these memorable times. I will announce my plans very soon but, in the meantime, my full focus is on delivering on track for this team and having a successful remainder of the season.”
Where do you think Esteban Ocon will end up?
