After his contract expires at the end of the 2024 Formula One season, Esteban Ocon will depart Alpine.
After five seasons together, Alpine and Ocon mutually decided to part ways at the end of the year, the company stated on Monday.
After Ocon and teammate Pierre Gasly crashed on the opening lap of the Monaco Grand Prix, team principal Bruno Famin responded angrily, casting doubt on Ocon’s future at Alpine and raising the possibility that he would be benched for the upcoming race in Canada.
However, it is known that the decision for Alpine and Ocon to split up has been discussed for some time and is not directly related to what transpired in Monaco. Before departing the squad, Ocon will race in Canada and for the balance of the season.
Ocon said in a statement that he had spent a “significant period of my life” associated to Alpine and the it would “always be a special place for me.”
2020 Sakhir
2021 Hungary
2023 Monaco
Let us keep working hard for the rest of the season.
Merci pour tout, Esteban pic.twitter.com/Xz28278DUu
— BWT Alpine F1 Team (@AlpineF1Team) June 3, 2024
“We have had some great moments together, some tough moments as well, and I am certainly grateful to everyone at the team for these memorable times,” Ocon said.
“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.”
What next for Ocon and Alpine?
Ocon’s exit, which also frees up a seat at Alpine and makes the one-time grand prix winner a free agent, is the most recent significant development in the competitive F1 driver market for 2025.
If Ocon wants to stay on the grid, his best bet for next year is to investigate the open spots at Sauber, Williams, and Haas.
Carlos Sainz, the driver of Ferrari at the moment, is reportedly the top choice for both Sauber, who will take over as Audi’s factory F1 team starting in 2026, and Williams for the upcoming season. Although Sainz has not yet made a decision regarding his future, the news that Ocon is leaving Alpine will move the market forward for the upcoming season.
Alpine announced in the release announcing Ocon’s departure that their lineup for 2025 would be“announced in due course.”
In addition, Gasly’s contract expires at the end of the current campaign. The team intends to appeal to drivers by building its own engine for the next regulations in 2026, which most in the paddock view as an advantage over a customer engine supply.
In addition to the drivers already on the grid who might be of interest, Alpine is testing a lot with Jack Doohan, its F1 reserve driver, for the remainder of the year.
The latest twist in Ocon’s career
Ocon was a revelation in the junior ranks, coming through financially for the Manor squad to qualify for the Formula One in 2016 after defeating Max Verstappen in Formula Three.
when working for Force India for two seasons, Ocon left the team in 2019 to take up a reserve position at Mercedes when Lance Stroll was signed.
Ocon then signed with Renault in 2020, ahead of the company’s rebranding as Alpine the following year. In wet-dry circumstances, Ocon achieved a historic shock victory at the 2021 Hungarian Grand Prix.
Gasly joined him at Alpine the previous season, ending their previously tense relationship that began when they were youngsters competing against one another in go-karting.
Ocon and Gasly each had one podium place in the previous season, but Alpine’s results declined heading into 2024, resulting in just two points from the first eight races.
Ocon finished tenth in Miami, but he was forced to retire from the race in Monaco after making a move on Gasly on the first lap when both cars were in contention for points. The team was disappointed that Ocon’s relocation cost them a chance to score more points, even though Gasly finished in tenth place. Soon after the race, Ocon acknowledged full responsibility for the incident.
(Jakub Porzycki/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
