Alpine’s Pierre Gasly has shared an update on his relationship with Esteban Ocon, speaking about their past issues and how things stand today during a recent appearance on Formula 1’s Off The Grid series. Gasly has been a familiar face in the paddock since breaking into the sport in 2017.
Alpine’s Pierre Gasly has shared an update on his relationship with Esteban Ocon, speaking about their past issues and how things stand today during a recent appearance on Formula 1’s Off The Grid series.
Gasly has been a familiar face in the paddock since breaking into the sport in 2017. Over that time, he’s built a reputation as one of F1’s more experienced drivers.
One of the standout moments of his career came in 2020 when he took advantage of Lewis Hamilton’s penalty to claim a memorable home victory at Monza.
He had spent his entire career up to that point within the Red Bull system but eventually grew frustrated by not getting another chance with the senior team. That led him to Alpine, where he was paired with Ocon, someone he’d clashed with before joining them.
What Gasly Said About His Relationship With Ocon
“I think there is definitely more respect between us now,” Gasly said during his appearance on Off The Grid. “I always respected him for what he’s done and for what he’s achieved. It just didn’t start well when we were younger.”
The pair have struggled to find common ground since first meeting as youngsters karting together outside of Paris. While it seemed unlikely they would ever race alongside each other, fate brought them back together under surprising circumstances.
Pierre Gasly & Esteban Ocon Rivalry Explained
The two Frenchmen grew up racing against each other outside Paris and they were close during their karting days.
They were eventually brought back together by what could be described as remarkable circumstances after being signed by Alpine for the 2023 season.
While appearing on F1’s Off The Grid, Gasly was asked about where things stand between him and Ocon.
Speaking about friends within the sport, the conversation shifted to Ocon. Gasly said: “Well, Esteban is… yeah, we could make a full documentary about it.
“We used to spend Wednesdays and weekends on track together pretty much every week. Him going to my place, me going to his place. We had a very strong bond.
“Sadly, there was very much like a turning point in one of the races; it sort of just fell apart after that, like in a very dramatic way. A way in which I don’t think we would have even imagined, which is a bit difficult to explain.”
He later continued: “We know exactly where we come from. We know what we had to go through to actually make it. We also both know that it was actually probably a good thing for us that we had a rivalry that pushed us beyond our potential.”
“I have no doubt that maybe in 10 years or 20 years, we’ll be able to talk things through in a very different way,” he said.
“I was fighting him on track last week and probably going to be fighting him again on track next week. And there are things that won’t be said until all of that is over. So at the end of the day, it’s a very special relationship.”
Looking back at Gasly and Ocon’s on-track run-ins during their time together at Alpine
When Alpine announced that Ocon would be paired with the newly signed Gasly for the 2023 season, questions were raised about how they would get along. The two already had a strained relationship before becoming teammates.
Within the team, there was a sense that Gasly was trying to mend fences with Ocon, but it didn’t take long for things to boil over again.
The first flashpoint came just three races into the season. During a late restart in Australia, Gasly moved back toward the racing line after going wide, unaware that Ocon was right beside him. The collision cost Alpine what could have been a strong double points finish.
The Hungary incident was more of a racing clash than anything else, but Monaco proved to be more serious.
Ocon ignored team orders and tried an aggressive move on Gasly at Portier. The cars made contact and Ocon’s race ended before reaching La Rascasse.
The incident left Alpine frustrated. Team principal Bruno Famin said there would be consequences. Not long after, news broke that Ocon would not return to Alpine for 2025.
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Category: General Sports
