Verstappen and Ocon, who race in Monaco
Max was undoubtedly among the two greatest protagonists of the Monte-Carlo Grand Prix Verstappen and Esteban Or with. The first dominated both in the dry and in the wet, teaching a driving and handling lesson that proclaimed him as a champion of this era and a point of reference in the present and in the future. The Frenchman instead got the most out of his Alpine, both in qualifying and in the race: shrewd and well-timed on Saturday, solid and reactive on Sunday, when he closed every door on the track and (together with the team) reacted instantly to the attempt to undercut by Lewis Hamilton, defending third place also in the strategic battle.
This is the third podium of his career for Ocon. Curiously, on the other two occasions (Sakhir 2020 and Hungaroring 2021) Verstappen had been put out of contention for victory already on the first lap. Yesterday, however, the two arrived as they started, and at the end of the race they met for the first time on a Formula 1 podium.
The F1 tweet
In reality, however, Verstappen and Ocon have already shared a podium: it was the 2014 and the two – then 17 and 18 year olds – competed in European Formula 3, battling for the championship, later won by the Frenchman, in their year as rookies. Formula 1 dug up from the archives last time with a Verstappen-Ocon podium: it was Race-3 at Imola, won by Verstappen ahead of Antonio Fuoco and the #31 from Alpine.
A podium reunion, nine years in the making 🥰
Max and Esteban share the rostrum for the first time since Imola 2014, back in their European Formula 3 days!#MonacoGP #F1 pic.twitter.com/R323RCEIaS
— Formula 1 (@F1) May 29, 2023
A complicated relationship
Hugs and smiles, even yesterday. But the two didn’t always get along and even today – while respecting each other – they certainly can’t call themselves friends. After years of rivalry that already started in karts due to a contact caused by Ocon, the two met first in the preparatory categories for Formula 1 and then in the top category, where they even came to blows at Interlagos. In Brazil, in 2018, Ocon in fact hit the Dutchman in an attempt to double, taking away the victory from his former rival.
#Verstappen #Ocon #podium