The civil war between Esteban Ocon and Pierre Gasly reached another high at Monaco. There are now rumours that Alpine seriously considers to suspend Ocon from the Canadian Grand Prix. What is going on?
Image: Getty Images
In 2023, Gasly joined the French team. Together with Ocon he build an all-French team in F1. Hopes were high that both Gasly and Ocon help the team to move forward towards the Top 3. That was not the case as Aston Martin made a big step and jumped ahead.
Gasly and Ocon never really got along, since their karting days. That was known. But at Alpine they have a professional relationship and that everything what happened in the past stays in the past.
However, the duo came together multiple times. The first real incident that comes into mind is at the 2023 Australian Grand Prix right after a standing restart. At this year’s Japanese Grand Prix they also came together and continued with damage. And now Monaco happened.
The season didn’t start as good as they would have expected anyways. An overweight car, problems with aerodynamics and more meant that the Enstone based team was at the back of the grid. The car was sometimes slower than its predecessor.
According to Pierre Gasly, before the start of the season, the team told both their drivers to stay away from each other to avoid any contact. This was due to the team‘s focus on bringing upgrades for the A524 as quickly as possible. Every bit of damage would delay crucial upgrades.
Image: LAT Images
But what has happened at Monaco? Both Alpine‘s started in P10 and P11, Gasly ahead of Ocon. Gasly had a good start, same as Ocon and they went through without any damage. They even managed to make up one position each, with both of them finding themselves in ninth and tenth position.
Right before the red flag for Perez‘s accident with both Haas drivers was deployed, Gasly and Ocon came together. Ocon tried to lunge it down the inside at the tight Portier corner, right before the tunnel. He managed to get ahead of Gasly but didn’t leave any space for his fellow Frenchman. They collided, Ocon‘s A524 was lifted into the air and was damaged.
“We have a lot of damage on the car”, team principal Bruno Famin said. “The left-rear suspension is bent, the gearbox casing is damaged. We’re changing the whole gearbox, it’s a huge amount of work.”
Famin was angry about this incident and said that “this kind of incident is sad. It’s exactly what we didn’t want to see”. According to him, Ocon‘s dive to gain a position on his team-mate was “completely out of place”. He went on to go one step further.
“There will be the appropriate consequences.”
He was asked by French television channel Canal+, who interviewed him, how serious his response would be. One of the translations of his words was: “We’re going to take drastic action.” It’s serious.
Image: XPB Images
Sky Sports News says that Alpine is “seriously considering” to suspend Ocon for the next round at Canada. And it is believed that it could be for even more rounds. This could be done as a punishment for the needless collision.
Famin didn’t issue further comments on this topic. In Alpine‘s official press release he said: “As a team, we will review and manage the incident between both cars behind closed doors. We must avoid situations that have the potential to compromise the team.”
Behind the scenes, it is understood that Famin was left fuming about the incident.
Gasly also had his take on this topic and said that “we had clear instructions before the race on what to do, and whoever qualified ahead, the trailing car was supposed to help throughout the race,” he said. “That was the strategy. Unfortunately, it didn’t happen.”
Despite the collision at Portier, Gasly‘s A524 was left without any damage and he went on to secure P10 for the team. He therefore scored the second point of the season for the constructors standings. Ocon received a 5-place grid penalty for the incident, which he has to serve at the next race he participates in.
Even though Sky Sports News says that the team consider to bench Ocon for one round, there are also other options available which also under consideration. Financial penalties or team orders to prevent both drivers from fighting each other for position. To change the driver line-up is also on the cards.
Jack Doohan would take over Ocon‘s car, if the Frenchman is being suspended for Canada. The Australian is Alpine‘s reserve driver for another year. German media speculate that Mick Schumacher also has a chance but this is not the case. There is only minimal chance for that to happen due to preparations for the 24 hours of Le Mans in June.
Currently, Alpine is discussing the options. If we get official announcements is a different story but a few days before the race weekend at Canada starts, we should have a concrete view on this spicy topic.