Driver to be replaced immediately after Qatar Grand Prix for F1 debut | F1 | Sport
Alpine have reportedly axed Esteban Ocon ahead of the final race of the 2024 season, with news emerging hours after the Qatar Grand Prix.
Ocon retired on the first lap of the race on Sunday after an incident involving Franco Colapinto and Nico Hulkenberg, potentially his final action for Alpine before joining Haas next season.
Motorsport.com claim that Ocon will be replaced by Jack Doohan in Abu Dhabi, where he will make his Formula One debut in preparation for the young Australian who will race for the team in 2025.
Alpine have made no official confirmation of the decision but were said to have asked Ocon to raise his level and match team-mate Pierre Gasly, though ending after a single lap may well have been the final straw.
Gasly finished in the points at Losail in fifth, having secured a podium with his team-mate in Brazil two races ago, though will finish the season below his fellow Frenchman.
Ocon will be at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix regardless of Alpine’s call, in order to complete an end-of-season test at Yas Marina to begin preparation for the new campaign.
Doohan is the current Alpine reserve driver and is widely expected to be promoted a few months early to get a glimpse at F1 action before officially stepping up in March.
While The Race claim that Ocon’s early Enstone exit is linked to being able to complete a test for his new team Haas in Abu Dhabi, the driver is said to have acquiesced to the early switch in order to protect his planned test, which Alpine still has control over.
Alpine is still in a Constructors’ Championship battle with Haas and RB, but promoting Doohan would be a show of confidence that the team believes that the 21-year-old can be on par or even outperform Ocon in the final race of the year.
After what could potentially be his last race for Alpine, Ocon thanked the mechanics and engineers that worked on his 2024 vehicle. “It was wrong place, wrong time I think,” he explained after retiring. “Racing incident unfortunately.
“I think we were all on the outside, started to get quite narrow. And unfortunately, we were already outside of the track when the collision occurred.
“Unfortunately it’s an incident and a short race for us. Not something that we wanted, but I would like to thank the team for their hard work over this race and their hard work over the whole year.”
