Esteban Ocon will leave the French team at the end of his contract with Alpine at the end of the 2024 season. Alpine has chosen to continue with Pierre Gasly, and team principal Bruno Famin has explained the reasons for this decision.
The story between Alpine and Esteban Ocon is coming to an end after five years of collaboration. During the recent Austrian Grand Prix, Bruno Famin, the boss of the Alpine team, explained that this departure was part of a logic of necessary renewal for the French team.
“We all know that with Esteban we were at the end of a cycle, a five-year cyclebalance Famin. It was difficult to keep both drivers because we need to renew, as we do with engineers, we need to renew the blood to improve, to change the process.”
Why keep Pierre Gasly?
If Ocon leaves, Alpine has decided to extend the contract of Pierre Gasly, who was again in the points last weekend at the Austrian Grand Prix.
Famin detailed the reasons behind this choice: “We are keeping Pierre, because I think he still has a lot to bring to the team. He will develop in a different way, with a different image, and that’s it.”
Progress and hopes for the future
After a disastrous start to the season, Alpine has been in a positive dynamic for several Grands Prix. Famin says he is satisfied with the latest developments made by the team, even if he also recognizes that they still have a long way to go.
“Since Bahrain we have made an interesting step, but we are not yet where we want to be. We are happy with the evolution, but we are not happy with the positionhe added. He also mentioned the importance of the arrival of David Sanchez as technical director to strengthen the project.
