The Alpine Formula 1 team has only won one Grand Prix since shedding its Renault name a few years back—the 2021 Hungarian Grand Prix—and the driver to deliver it was Esteban Ocon. And yet, despite Ocon being the only one to bring some hardware to the team’s trophy case, Alpine is breaking up with Ocon at the end of the season.
It’s hard not to make the connection between Alpine’s sudden decision to ditch Ocon and his recent crash at the 2024 Monaco Grand Prix. Just over a week ago, Ocon aggressively tried to overtake his teammate Piere Gasly and the two collided, sending Ocon’s car up into the air and damaging his car enough to end his day on the very first lap. According to Sky Sports, Alpine claims that Ocon’s crash in Monaco wasn’t factored into the decision to part ways. However, Alpine team boss Bruno Famin was so upset about the crash that after the race he said “There would be consequences.”
“We would like to firstly thank Esteban for his commitment to the team for the past five years. During his time, we have celebrated some fantastic moments together, the best of which coming at the 2021 Hungarian Grand Prix with a memorable race win,” said Famin in a statement.
“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,” Ocon said. “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.
“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,” he added.
There are now two veteran drivers available for the 2025 season, Ocon and Carlos Sainz, who’s currently in his final season at Ferrari. Mercedes is going to be short a driver next year, as Lewis Hamilton departs to take Sainz’s spot at Ferrari. Williams will have an open spot, too, and so will Haas F1. Ocon will have choices but Sainz, having more Grand Prix victories under his belt, might be the more in-demand driver.
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