The separation of Ocon from his team seemed inevitable following his controversial actions at the Monaco Grand Prix, but it still came as a surprise. Equally surprising was Red Bull’s decision to extend Perez’s contract for two years, despite his significant decline in performance. This decline was particularly evident after a disappointing weekend in Monte-Carlo for the experienced Mexican driver.
The most shocking aspect of Perez’s new deal is its duration. While a one-year extension would have been reasonable for the 34-year-old, the decision to offer him a couple more years is both generous and unbelievable, as noted by Villeneuve. The former F1 World Champion stated, “He has had his worst season ever at Red Bull. Normally he would have an amazing first few races. But he hasn’t even had that this year. So, he’s collapsed on top of that! He was already behind Max at the start of the season and now he’s dropped another half a second. That is ten cars on the grid. I don’t know what is going on.”
Turning to the situation at Alpine, Villeneuve expressed his lack of surprise at the departure of Esteban Ocon. He believed it was inevitable that Alpine would not retain both Ocon and Pierre Gasly, given that they are both French drivers. Villeneuve questioned the logic of having two French drivers in a French team, as it limits their market potential to France alone. He also pointed out that Ocon’s actions in Monaco made the decision to let him go an easy one for the team.
Sources within the F1 paddock suggest that Ocon is currently in talks with Haas to replace Kevin Magnussen next year. It is also likely that Haas will include Ferrari protege Oliver Bearman in their lineup for their final year as a customer of the Maranello team.
Villeneuve is certain about who should replace Ocon at Alpine: Jack Doohan, their reserve driver. According to Villeneuve, Alpine has invested a significant amount of money in preparing Doohan, having him drive the old car for three years. It would be logical to give him the opportunity to step into Ocon’s vacant seat.
The driver market in F1 is currently very uncertain, with many waiting to see what will happen with Carlos Sainz, as well as at Williams, Mercedes, and Haas. There is a lot of movement expected in the coming months.
Out of the 20 drivers currently on the F1 grid, only 11 are confirmed for next year. This means that there are nine seats up for grabs, making this one of the most volatile driver Silly Seasons in recent memory. This is in stark contrast to last year, when no driver lost their job.
The end of this season is shaping up to be very different, and it will be interesting to see how the driver market unfolds.