On the opening lap in Monaco, the two Alpine team-mates unfortunately collided.
Pierre Gasly said he was “shocked” and “disappointed” when there was contact made between himself and Esteban Ocon on the first lap of the Monaco Grand Prix.
As Ocon attempted to pass his teammate on the exit of Portier, the two Alpine drivers collided. Gasly argued that this move went against the team’s strategy since he had the advantage of starting ahead and therefore had priority on the track.
Pierre Gasly ‘quite shocked’ at ‘very unnecessary’ Esteban Ocon contact
Additional reporting by Sam Cooper
Bruno Famin, the team principal of Alpine, expressed his disapproval of the collision and emphasized that there would be repercussions, especially for Ocon. Following the incident, Ocon took to social media to accept responsibility for the contact.
After a strong collision upon landing caused their wheels to bump, he ultimately chose to retire from the race. On the other hand, Gasly managed to recover and earn his first point of the season by the time the chequered flag waved.
Gasly declined to answer when questioned about Ocon’s attempt to prioritize his own interests, considering that both drivers’ contracts are set to expire this season.
As a professional driver, your instincts guide you on what actions to take and avoid, especially when working alongside your team-mate.
He possesses exceptional driving skills, incredibly proficient in his craft. All he requires is to enact a modification.
During the incident, the two drivers were aggressively vying for position in the initial stage of the first lap. However, things escalated at Portier and resulted in a collision that caused Ocon to be completely knocked out of the race.
Gasly expressed his disappointment regarding the incident, highlighting that this was not the first time they had collided as Alpine team-mates, as they had previously experienced a collision during the 2023 Australian Grand Prix.
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“The move was completely unnecessary,” he said, expressing his shock and surprise.
It’s really unfortunate to have such a situation within the team, especially when it involves teammates. It’s just really disheartening.
We were disappointed with the situation, particularly because we had received clear instructions prior to the race about what to do and how the trailing car was expected to assist with the strategy if they qualified ahead. However, regrettably, this did not occur.
We absolutely need to have a conversation about this because we cannot afford to drop points, especially during a critical season like this. Every point could be crucial by the end of the year, so we must ensure that it doesn’t happen again.
In taking responsibility for the crash after it happened, Ocon hopes to be able to move on at the next race in Canada in a fortnight’s time.
Despite his satisfaction with earning his first point of the season, Gasly acknowledges that he and his teammate carry the responsibility of representing the broader Alpine organization. He is determined not to squander their efforts on the race track.
“Yes, on that side,” Gasly responded, acknowledging that Ocon’s admission does facilitate the team’s ability to progress.
However, on the flip side, we are still witnessing a car that has suffered damage, failed to complete the race, yet there is a possibility of it earning some points. It was a close call, with both cars narrowly avoiding crashing into the wall by a few centimeters.
Ultimately, we succeeded without facing consequences, and I’m simply relieved that we reached the desired outcome from my perspective, and we were able to secure that achievement.
However, we definitely don’t want to witness that. Ultimately, we have a team of 1200 individuals supporting us.
“All of them are putting in maximum effort to give us the finest car imaginable, yet they’re just sitting back and watching the race on Sunday. They should not be subjected to such a situation.”
Yes, we will have a discussion about it and make improvements.
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