Formula 1 | Ocon denounces heavy Alpine car and unfair treatment of team

Relations between Esteban Ocon and Alpine are collapsing.

Fired by the Renault-controlled team for 2025, Ocon claimed on Sunday that his car weighed more than that of his teammate Pierre Gasly.

“We’ve had a weight problem, on my side, for a while,” he told Canal Plus in Montreal – the first race since Alpine announced the 2025 split.

“So we have to try to manage this as best we can in the next few races. It’s been a few races now that my car is much heavier than Pierre’s,” Ocon explained.

“We’ll alternate throughout the year, but that’s the case for me now since Miami. When all these things add up, it’s hard to get past the first quarter,” he said. “I’m not going to go into details, but it’s a few pounds.”

Gasly, however, who is expected to remain in the team next year, suggested Ocon may be exaggerating the amount.

“Yeah, I was lighter at the start of the year and then obviously we trade parts, so I’m a kilo lighter or something,” he said. “It’s still very close.”

Ocon then criticized the team for asking him to pass Gasly during Sunday’s Canadian GP due to a dead battery, then not swapping places once it was clear the Alpine sister could not. not overtake Daniel Ricciardo.

“I should have finished ninth at the end,” Ocon said. “I played my role by respecting the team’s instructions, as I always have done. I did my job, the team did not do theirs.

“Unfortunately, this is a trend that will continue until the end of the year. This is not correct,” he insisted. “I take all the risks and I should have been ninth with 2 points.

“I don’t know where the call came from, but I’ve done my part.”

Asked if he thought Alpine was deliberately hurting him for leaving the team, Ocon replied: “I give them the benefit of the doubt.”

Interestingly, even though he was furious after Ocon’s crash with Gasly in Monaco, team boss Bruno Famin forgave Ocon’s anger in Montreal.

“He had a bit of a hot reaction, which is normal,” he said. “I understand, with the adrenaline of the race, and I’m sure everything will calm down very quickly. I have no worries about that.

“I am very happy with the work done by the drivers, Esteban and Pierre,” added Famin.

The hot rumor in the paddock is that Ocon has already signed a 2025 deal with Haas.

“We’ll see,” Ocon said when asked about it. “I will announce something when the time is right. Now is not the right time.

“It’s just a shame that it has to end like this. Being the good guy in Formula 1 doesn’t always pay off and that bothers me a lot.”