F1 | Alpine: Ocon scapegoat saved in a team in disarray

At the top levels of Alpine, the Ocon case has taken center stage in recent days. Many scenarios were evaluated, including that of excluding Esteban’s participation in the Canadian Grand Prix, scheduled for two weekends. In the end, common sense prevailed: Ocon will be on track regularly in Montreal as well as until the end of the season.

Jack Doohan, indicated as his possible replacement, will have to settle for the FP1 session. However, there were some tense days, team principal Bruno Famin publicly expressed his disappointment at what happened during the first lap of the Monaco Grand Prix, openly criticizing Ocon’s actions.

Accidents between teammates are among the worst nightmares for those who lead a team, in F.1 and in all categories present in motorsport. Ocon made a mistake in Monaco, jeopardizing his race and risking putting an end to teammate Gasly’s race too.

In the end there were no consequences for Pierre, and at the end of the 78 scheduled laps he finished in tenth position, scoring his first point of the season. However, this was not enough to calm Famin’s fury.

Everything has its own logic, but other evaluations have also emerged with a cool head. Alpine is going through a very difficult moment, both on the technical and management front, and there are some clouds over the team’s future that could lead to a disengagement from the French company. In this scenario, which has continued since the first race of the season, the first outcry occurred against Ocon, undoubtedly responsible for a mistake, but certainly not the only one to have made one in Alpine.

Putting Esteban in the dock also appears to be a political move, to distract from the team’s real shortcomings. Ocon is responsible for having thrown away a race by attempting a risky overtaking on his teammate, and he immediately admitted his faults with a message published on social channels: “The accident was due to an error on my part, the space of maneuver (where he attempted to overtake Gasly) was too short, and I apologize to the team for what happened.” It wasn’t enough to escape the social storm.

Esteban Ocon, Alpine F1 Team, with girlfriend Flavy Barla

Photo by: Glenn Dunbar / Motorsport Images

However, in Alpine there are other people who have greater responsibilities regarding the situation into which the team has fallen, a management that has compromised the current season (and perhaps not only…) with questionable strategic choices, both on the technical and managerial front. Driver management also fits into this scenario, from the unforgivable loss of Oscar Piastri to the choice to pair Gasly with Ocon, separated by fifteen years and by a rivalry that began when they were still in karting. Not to mention the ‘live’ sackings during the Spa weekend last year, with team principal Otmar Szafnauer and sporting director Alan Permane forced to take off their uniforms and leave the Belgian paddock on Saturday morning after receiving their dismissal.

Followed by another series of departures: Technical Director Matt Harman, Chief Technical Officer Pat Fry, aerodynamicist Dirk de Beer, technical consultant Bob Bell and finally operations director Rob White, shown the door last week after 20 years of service in Enstone. Even in the case of Ocon the future is written. There are whispers among insiders that Alpine will seize the opportunity, justifying its desire not to extend Esteban’s contract due to what happened in Monaco. In reality, Ocon has already been on the market for some time looking for alternatives, and among the various options it has on the table the most popular is that of Haas.

The iron fist that is characterizing Luca De Meo’s management is not, however, followed in step by a recruitment campaign with figures worthy of those shown the door. This will most likely also be the case in the case of Ocon, who was preferred to Pierre Gasly, indicated as being very popular with De Meo. It is true that Esteban made some mistakes, that his conduct in the match was sometimes difficult in defending his position in a very difficult context such as that of the mid-table. But it is also undeniable that the best results obtained by the team in the last three and a half years bear his signature.

It is black and white that he managed to win the only victory of Alpine management, as well as a record up to Alonso’s (not exactly the most comfortable teammate) in the two years of cohabitation with Fernando. Now, in the situation Alpine finds itself in today, with difficulty even in finding a team principal, an error by Ocon is obviously not pleasant, but it is the least of the problems. Replacing Esteban won’t be a problem, the market offers alternatives, but bringing Alpine back to the top will be a much more complex job that has nothing to do with the choice to keep or get rid of Ocon.