Alpine news: Esteban Ocon 'privileged' to battle teammate Fernando Alonso in Jeddah

Alpine had made it clear to its drivers that they would be allowed to race each other, just as they had in Bahrain.

Esteban Ocon and Fernando Alonso in Jeddah in 2022. (Image: Twitter/Esteban Ocon)
By Nilavro Ghosh | Mar 28, 2022 | 2 Min Read follow icon Follow Us

Alpine’s Esteban Ocon started two places ahead of teammate Fernando Alonso in fifth in Jeddah on Sunday, but after falling behind Mercedes’ George Russell, he had to fight off the Spaniard, with the two trading places several times in the opening laps. Alonso eventually took the lead, while Ocon was passed by Valtteri Bottas, who had been able to join the fight thanks to the Alpine drivers holding each other up.

After a late battle with Lando Norris that was resolved only on the final straight, Alonso retired with an undisclosed loss of drive, while Ocon held on to sixth place. Alpine had made it clear to its drivers that they would be allowed to race each other, just as they had in Bahrain.

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“It was a lot of fun,” said Ocon when asked about his eventful evening. “Good racing with Lando, good racing with Fernando, with Valtteri. It’s a completely different philosophy now racing with these cars, it’s pretty much like a go-kart race. And fighting with Fernando very closely, we were very close in all sessions this weekend, in qualifying, there was less than a tenth separating us. So it’s going to be close all year. But that’s pushing the team performance up.”

Privilege to race Alonso: Ocon

The two Alpine driver’s battle on track eventually led to those behind them catching up but Ocon remained thankful for the opportunity to race the two-time world champion in a competitive situation.

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“I think of course when you fight, same as in go-karts, you lose time, it’s normal,” he said. “But at the time in a one-stop race, track position is quite important. And we were allowed to race by the team. It’s always a privilege to race Fernando. It makes me smile.”

“He’s great on race craft, we know that, he’s extremely fast. And the legend himself, fighting, it’s always a privilege. It’s good that we race so close. And it’s good that we can push the team forward. I think he didn’t lose any speed also from when he was fighting with Lewis [Hamilton] back in 2007, I think. He’s like a good wine, he matured with age!”