Esteban Ocon has left Alpine early after the Qatar Grand Prix. Jack Doohan is poised to replace him for the season-finale in Abu Dhabi.
Following his retirement at the Lusail International Circuit, Ocon’s ‘unusual’ interview hinted at his exit. He hinted that there was something amiss by thanking his team for their hard work throughout the year, something a driver ordinarily does at the end of the season.
It subsequently emerged that Ocon’s time with Alpine had come to a premature end. They’d already agreed a mutual parting of ways back in June.
Soon after, the Frenchman signed a deal to race for their midfield rivals Haas. Reserve driver Doohan is stepping up as his replacement.
Ocon scored an extraordinary second place at the Sao Paulo GP earlier this month. He’ll see that as his symbolic farewell to Alpine, rather than the P17 and the DNF that followed.
He wasn’t at fault for his DNF on the opening lap. Nico Hulkenberg’s snap of oversteer led to contact with the Frenchman, who in turn took out Colapinto.
Esteban Ocon asked Flavio Briatore for early Haas test before Alpine exit
Speaking live on Sky Sports F1 after the Qatar GP, presenter and analyst Ted Kravitz lifted the lid on the conversations at Alpine. Ocon asked Flavio Briatore, an advisor to CEO Luca de Meo and the de facto boss of the F1 team, whether he could test for new team Haas at Yas Marina.
This isn’t uncommon, and both Nico Hulkenberg (Sauber) and Carlos Sainz (Williams) will enjoy a head start on their 2025 preparations in the Tuesday session. But the drivers require a blessing from their current team because they’re technically under contract until the end of the year.
Briatore asked Ocon what he stood to gain from granting his request. It was at that stage that they agreed he’d step aside for Abu Dhabi.
This gives Doohan a ‘running start’ ahead of his rookie campaign. With Alpine five points ahead of Haas, the Australian will be helping Pierre Gasly defend P6 in the constructors’.
“Esteban Ocon was very keen to do the post-season test on the Tuesday after the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix for his new team Haas,” Kravitz said. “And he went to Flavio Briatore, the man who makes decisions here at Alpine.
“He said ‘Flavio, can I do the test?’, and Flavio asked ‘what’s in it for me?’. And it seems that they’ve reached a deal – ‘okay you can do the test for Haas, if you don’t race in Abu Dhabi for Alpine, because I’d like to give Jack Doohan a running start at next year’s Alpine employment’. That is the deal that’s been struck.”
Is this the real reason Jack Doohan will race for Alpine at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix?
Cynics may posit alternative theories. One of those is that Ocon had encountered a sudden of conflict interest given the prospect of denying prize money to his new team.
Alpine and Haas weren’t competitors until the Enstone outfit flew up the order with a double podium in Brazil. And perhaps that changed the landscape.
Another reading is that Alpine want to assess Doohan amid interest in Franco Colapinto. The Colapinto to Alpine rumours won’t go away even though Briatore has two drivers under contract.
If he struggles in Abu Dhabi, perhaps the Italian will be of a mind to change his line-up if at all possible. But Jenson Button says Alpine risk a backlash if they drop the Australian in these circumstances.
Leave feedback about this