Ocon reveals damning Alpine setback
Esteban Ocon has revealed that a leading cause behind Alpine’s difficulties this season is that some feedback from drivers over recent years has not been listened to.
Alpine entered this season with the weakest package on the grid and currently sit eighth in the constructors’ championship.
The Enstone-based team has scored just 11 points from the 14 completed rounds, and has seen further managerial changes.
Former Renault boss Flavio Briatore has returned as an advisor, whilst Oliver Oakes has replaced Bruno Famin as Alpine’s team principal.
Since joining the team back in 2020, Ocon has seen considerable change. A notable change over the years has been his team-mate, having been partnered by Daniel Ricciardo, Fernando Alonso and currently Pierre Gasly during his five-year stint with the outfit.
Ocon’s current deal with Alpine which expires this season was signed back in 2021, with the trajectory he expected when signing the deal a few years ago having not come to fruition.
“Yeah, there’s a lot of things that were not evolved the way that it should’ve been,” Ocon told media including RacingNews365.
“I think, on my side, on Fernando’s side, on Pierre’s side, on Daniel’s side, we said a lot of things on the car development, and unfortunately, at some stage, there’s been a loop missing.
“We were giving the feedback, but didn’t really have the feedback coming back to us and the confirmation. Sometimes, we haven’t been listened to the way we should have been, I would say.”
Alpine frustration
Of course, Ocon will leave Alpine at the end of this year to join Haas, whose trajectory is one of the most impressive in the midfield.
Remarkably, Alpine’s communication setback has been ongoing for several seasons, according to Ocon.
The French driver revealed that the outfit has been carrying some of its issues for multiple seasons, frustrating the entire team.
“We are carrying some issues that we still had a couple of years ago,” revealed Ocon.
“We’ve improved a lot of other things, but you can’t be waiting years and years to be able to fix some problems.
“And that’s what has happened, the circle didn’t come back. The issues haven’t been fixed the way they should have been, which is frustrating.
“It is frustrating for everyone, because obviously we don’t have a car that performs the way we’re supposed to perform. That’s what we have to live with.”
