F1 Midweek: Buyers Beware: Esteban Ocon Comes With Baggage

Possibly overlooked by the excitement and drama of a wet Canadian Grand Prix on Sunday (June 9th) was the latest chapter in the ongoing Esteban Ocon-Alpine relationship that could easily be described as “toxic.” Late in the race in Montreal, Ocon, in ninth place and managing a power unit issue, was asked politely to concede the position to teammate Pierre Gasly so that Gasly could attack Daniel Ricciardo in eighth. After first refusing, Ocon eventually agreed with the assurance from the team that should Gasly fail to overtake Ricciardo, Gasly would give the position back to Ocon. Whether the team agreed to this condition is unclear, but Gasly did not pass Ricciardo, and Gasly did not give the position back to Ocon.

The team cited the danger of losing a position or positions to the trailing Haas cars for not giving Ocon the position back. Ocon seemed not to accept Alpine’s explanation, calling their orders “unexplainable,” which I believe is French for “inexplicable.” That’s not surprising because if you can show me a driver on the short end of a team order who didn’t question it, then I can show you Bigfoot riding a unicorn on oceanfront property in Arizona. 

The real issue here is why on earth would Ocon believe the words coming out of Alpine’s mouth? Alpine would not have the best interest of a driver in mind when said driver is not returning to the team the following year. Especially when the reason Ocon is not returning is due to his actions at the Monaco Grand Prix on May 26th. Early in the first lap of that race, Ocon made an extremely ill-advised lunge in an effort to pass Gasly, initiating contact that bounced Ocon’s Alpine into the air. Gasly famously exclaimed over the team radio, “What did he do? What did he do?” A question that, considering the gravity of the situation, was quite an understatement. Gasly could continue, but Ocon retired from the race with a damaged gearbox after returning to the pits.

Not long after the crash, Alpine team principal Bruno Famin blasted Ocon’s actions as irresponsible in a live television interview, stating that “there would be consequences.” This moment essentially spelled the end of Ocon’s tenure with Alpine. Just a few days later, Ocon announced he would leave Alpine at season’s end. Ocon and Alpine said other factors played a role in Ocon’s departure, and the decision was not based solely on the Monaco debacle. That is probably an accurate statement. But replacing “not based solely” with “almost exclusively” in that sentence would also be accurate. And both iterations of the statement can be true. I would be totally shocked if Famin hadn’t used the term “last straw” in internal discussions after the Monaco incident.

In short, when Ocon realized Alpine had lost all trust in him, then he should have terminated any trace of trust in them. 

Does this all mean Ocon won’t have a seat in F1 next season? Absolutely not. Ocon has driving talent. Heck, he’s scored points in an Alpine. And, if you’re a team that happens to be looking for a petulant child with driving talent, then Ocon is your man. His resume is solid, albeit totally devoid of good references from any former teammates. But his “talent to petulance ratio (or TPR)” is a negative number. In other words, he has a bad TPR. By comparison, Max Verstappen, in his brash, reckless, and volatile teenage years in Formula 1, had a TPR well into the positive numbers. In short, Ocon has talent, but not enough to be such a punk.

Ocon is extremely confident in his abilities. To be a Formula 1 driver, a high level of confidence is mandatory. There’s nothing wrong with having a high opinion of yourself. Ocon’s problem is this: he has a high opinion of himself and no one else.  

Saying Ocon has no self-awareness would be inaccurate. In fact, he has nothing but self-awareness – as in, he only cares about himself.

Wherever Ocon lands, he will have a teammate, and any team thinking about hiring Ocon should make sure Ocon’s potential teammate is totally in line with the hire. Maybe being totally in line with it would be asking too much. Somewhat in line might be a better level to shoot for.  

There’s likely a growing list of drivers whose opinion of Ocon could be boiled down to one statement: “I can’t work with that guy.” Ocon has a history of butting heads with teammates. Ocon clashed with Sergio Perez when the pair drove for Force India, where the team once banned the two from racing each other. Ocon and Daniel Ricciardo, at times, struggled to gel as teammates at Renault. If you can’t get along with the affable Ricciardo, you need to look in the mirror, which I’m sure is something Ocon does often. 

Then, upon teaming up with Fernando Alonso at Alpine, Ocon seemed reluctant to acquiesce to a two-time world champion and one of the most technically proficient drivers in F1 history. This should have been a time when Ocon, then a 24-year-old, accepted his role as No. 2 to Alonso, who is 15 years his senior. Ocon seemed to balk at the idea of conceding anything to Alonso and seemingly refused to learn anything from the F1 veteran. At the start of the partnership, Alonso may have wanted to take Ocon under his wing; at the end, Alonso may have wanted to take him behind the woodshed.   

If a team decides to sign Ocon, he would have to be on equal footing with his teammate. Ocon should not be the No. 1 driver with any team. For one, he doesn’t deserve to be. And two, he would most certainly abuse his position; as in, he would expect his No. 2 to cater to him hand and foot. 

And if Ocon becomes the No. 2 with a team, he would likely refuse to do what a team would expect from a No. 2. Ocon is at best a No. 2 driver. Why? Because he’s pigeonholed himself into that category through conceit and selfishness. Has there ever been a “no whiners” clause in a driver’s contract? Ocon might need one.

Maybe Ocon’s issues derive simply from his personality. He’s brash, testy, and sure of himself. Of course, what world champion hasn’t had somewhat of a me-first attitude? It’s kind of a prerequisite for being a world champion. But if you’re going to have that attitude, you better have the talent to exceed it. Ocon doesn’t. That’s not to say he could at some point. Lose the attitude, and his talent would automatically exceed his attitude. 

Interested teams should carefully weigh the ups and downs of employing Ocon. Just be aware that he’s going to be hard-headed whether he’s in his driver’s helmet or not.