There are still around two-thirds of the Formula 1 season remaining, but already there are four drivers who have confirmed that they will be changing teams for 2025. That list is headed, of course, by Lewis Hamilton, who’s swapping Mercedes for Ferrari.
Carlos Sainz has known since the winter that he would be the victim of that move. He’s spent the months since looking for a new team and he’s now poised to join Williams.
That will mean snubbing the opportunity to work with former Renault teammate Nico Hulkenberg at Sauber/Audi. Haas announced his departure back in April.
Valtteri Bottas and Zhou Guanyu will already have begun looking for a new home. Sauber have told both drivers that they’re moving on without making it official.
And most recently, Alpine communicated a mutual decision to part ways with Esteban Ocon at the end of the season. This came after Ocon collided with teammate Pierre Gasly at the start of the Monaco Grand Prix, sparking the fury of team principal Bruno Famin.
Marc Priestley says Esteban Ocon situation at Alpine is deteriorating
Speaking on his YouTube channel, BBC F1 pundit Marc Priestley expressed concern over the status quo at Alpine. The team scored their best result of the season in Canada but it was undercut by further controversy.
They ordered Ocon, hampered by an engine issue, to let teammate Gasly through in the closing laps. And after expressing initial reluctance, the former moved aside under the proviso that Gasly would give him the place back if he couldn’t get a move on Daniel Ricciardo done.
But Alpine then informed him that the two cars would hold station until the chequered flag. This predictably angered Ocon, who made his frustration clear on the radio.
Priestley suspects that the relationship between team and driver is ‘going downhill rapidly’ behind the scenes. He feels that Famin and co. won’t appreciate Ocon’s public complaints following the race.
He said: “Although the team at Alpine had a good result in terms of a double points finish, there’s a massive situation brewing in terms of driver harmony, or team harmony, at that organisation. Esteban Ocon had disagreements and arguments over the radio when his team asked him to let Pierre Gasly by.
“He at first refused to do that, and then argued it to the point where, by the time he eventually let him by, it was only a lap and a half to go, and it was actually too late for Pierre Gasly to have any sort of chance of having a run at Daniel Ricciardo and it didn’t work.
“They then didn’t have enough time to swap them back. The result of that was that Esteban was very upset with the team, and made his feelings very, very public, which never goes down well with the team.
“Given that he’s already lost his drive, in inverted commas through ‘mutual consent’ – that’s rarely ever the case – I suspect that’s a relationship that’s going downhill rapidly.”
How Alpine could part ways with Ocon before the season is over
The tense atmosphere at Alpine raises the possibility that Ocon will move on midway through the 2024 campaign. Martin Brundle believes he’s on his way to Haas, so he doesn’t necessarily have to worry about advertising his abilities.
One journalist saysAlpine may look to ‘bin’ the 27-year-old during the summer break. But the likelihood of this happening remains unclear.
Alpine could oust the former Mercedes academy driver themselves if they can prove he isn’t working in their best interests. But there could also be a more amicable solution in the form of a pay-off.
This would allow the 453-point team to put reserve driver Jack Doohan in the car early ahead of a first full campaign in 2025. Doohan, who was due to drive in FP1 in Canada but didn’t complete a timed lap in tricky conditions, has perhaps been the favourite for the vacancy.
As for the second seat, Gasly is out of contract so the team need a resolution. They’re hoping to tie the 2020 Italian Grand Prix winner down to a long-term contract and ward off interest from Audi.
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