Remember when Max Verstappen pushed Esteban Ocon after the Brazilian GP after an incident on track? The French driver hasn’t had the best record of being a driver you can race hard with. In Fernando Alonso’s last year at Alpine, Ocon was involved in multiple incidents with the 2X champ. He was most recently involved in a crash with teammate and countryman Pierre Gasly that gave Jack Doohan hope for a drive at the Canadian GP. Regardless, Ocon ends the Alpine reserves’ hope revealing the outcome of Bruno Famin’s difficult decision.

Ocon and Gasly crashed on the first lap of the Monaco GP as Ocon squeezed his teammate towards the barrier before the run towards the tunnel. Gasly had no space on his outside and Ocon clipped the front of his teammate’s car, which sent the No.31 driver flying and resulted in a retirement. Alpine TP Bruno Famin was not happy with Ocon’s antics and came out after the Monaco GP to suggest that there would be consequences and posed a threat to Ocon’s seat stating, “ We are going to make a difficult decision”.

While many thought the decision was going to be Jack Doohan replacing Ocon, it has now been revealed to be the one to keep the Frenchman at the team. Esteban Ocon posted on Instagram to talk about the hatred he’s been receiving after the incident while also confirming the fact that he will be the one teaming up with Pierre Gasly to race at the Canadian GP for Alpine.

Esteban Ocon wrote, “Much has been said in the aftermath of the Monaco Grand Prix. While I have received many messages of support, I have been deeply saddened by the amount of abuse and negativity that I have received online regarding my character, my driving, and my career.”

Confirming his Canadian GP drive, Ocon added, “In the end, we are all competitors and hard, fair racing throughout the field is what makes our sport so great and the main reason why I love this sport so much. I’m looking forward to competing in Montreal, in front of the fantastic Canadian fans, and to the exciting opportunities the future holds.”

However, it’s not over for the French driver as he will face a penalty at the Canadian GP for the Monaco incident

Esteban Ocon’s grid penalty for the Monaco GP crash with Pierre Gasly

Even before the chequered flag at the Monaco GP, Esteban Ocon accepted his mistake and posted, “Today’s incident was my fault, the gap was too small in the end and I apologize to the team on this one. Hoping for a deserved points-finish for the team today.” With Ocon accepting that he made a mistake, it was a no-brainer that a penalty was coming his way. 

The Frenchman has received a 5 place grid penalty for the Canadian GP. The Stewards report read, “ The Stewards reviewed video and in-car video evidence and determined that Car 31 attempted to overtake Car 10 at Turn 8. The attempt resulted in the cars coming together, Car 31 being flung into the air and damaging the car.” It further read, “The baseline penalty for causing a collision in this season is a 10 second time penalty. This is what we imposed on Car 31. However, given that Car 31 did not finish the race, it will be converted to a drop of 5 grid positions for the next race in which the driver participates.”

What did you make of Esteban Ocon’s post on Instagram? Let us know in the comments.