Alpine confirmed after the Monaco Grand Prix that they would be parting ways with Esteban Ocon.
It was a move that surprised very few people in the paddock, especially after his collision with Alpine teammate Pierre Gasly on the opening lap in Monte Carlo.
Speaking on The Race Podcast, journalist Edd Straw has explained the likely next steps for Esteban Ocon in the F1 driver’s market.
Ocon is now one of the strongest free agents on the market and teams further down the grid who still need to fill one or two seats for 2025 will be carefully assessing whether to move for the Frenchman.
He, like many other drivers, is patiently waiting to see what decision Carlos Sainz makes ahead of next season after losing his Ferrari seat.
Straw believes that if Sainz doesn’t sign for Audi next year, then Ocon is at the ‘front of the queue’ to join the German manufacturers ahead of their introduction to Formula 1.
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Esteban Ocon now Audi’s preferred 2025 candidate if they can’t sign Carlos Sainz
The pieces of the 2025 Formula 1 puzzle are slowly falling into place with Red Bull making a key decision ahead of the Canadian Grand Prix.
Despite his recent struggles, Christian Horner and Helmut Marko decided to hand Sergio Perez a new contract, leaving Sainz looking further down the grid to remain in the sport.
It appears as though Sainz’s decision is going to come down to choosing between two teams – Audi / Sauber and Williams.
F1Oversteer understands that Sainz is in line to join Williams next year and drive alongside Alex Albon, replacing Logan Sargeant who had another race to forget in Montreal.
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That means that Ocon will be at the front of the queue to join Nico Hulkenberg at Audi next year.
Ocon may have developed a reputation for not being the easiest teammate to have in Formula 1.
However, he showed in the closing stages in Canada that he’s ready to play his part if required.
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Esteban Ocon has great chance of joining Audi / Sauber for the 2025 F1 season
Talking about the Frenchman’s future, Straw said: “Yeah and of course [Esteban] Ocon is sensitive about it because he’s trying to show what he can do because he wants to get a seat for next year, although he’s in a pretty good position.
“Sounds like he’s pretty much at the front of the queue behind [Carlos] Sainz at Audi and Carlos Sainz as we’ve discussed before seems to be more towards Williams.
“So, Ocon is in a promising position despite his understandable irritation.”
A one-time race winner, Ocon looks likely to still be on the grid in 2025 despite several rookies looking set to replace current drivers next year.
Audi want to hit the ground running in Formula 1 and have an awful lot of work to do given Sauber’s current struggles.
The German manufacturer have no interest in promoting any of their impressive junior drivers including Theo Pourchaire and Zane Maloney.
It also seems as though current drivers Valtteri Bottas and Zhou Guanyu are quite low down their shortlist of drivers.
This is all good news for Ocon who admitted that the time wasn’t right at the end of the Canadian Grand Prix to announce his future plans but seemed confident that his time in the paddock wasn’t about to come to an end.
The post ‘Promising’: Esteban Ocon at the ‘front of the queue’ behind Carlos Sainz for one 2025 F1 seat – journalist appeared first on F1 Oversteer.