Flavio Briatore returned to Alpine F1 in June as executive advisor after turmoil within the team led to the departure of several senior executives, and he has spoken about Esteban Ocon, Jack Doohan and Pierre Gasly.
Since his return, Briatore has made several controversial decisions, most notably dropping Esteban Ocon before the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
Ahead of the Italian’s return, it was announced that Ocon would depart the team at the end of the 2024 season.
Ocon was eventually announced to be joining Haas for the upcoming 2025 season on a multi-year-deal at the Belgian GP, as revealed in advance by Pit Debrief.
In the lead-up to the last Grand Prix in Abu Dhabi, Alpine announced that Ocon would be replaced by Jack Doohan.
Briatore on the decision to drop Ocon
In a recent interview with Le Parisien, Briatore states that the reasons for dropping Ocon were that the 28-year-old appeared “demotivated” and lacked performance compared to Pierre Gasly.
“I see things differently from the general public when it comes to Esteban Ocon.
“We really need to thank him for what he achieved in Brazil with that podium. But after that race, his focus was already on his new team Haas.
“Meanwhile, we were fighting for 6th place in the Constructors’ Championship against them.
“From what I saw in the last few races, he seemed completely demotivated, with a significant gap compared to Pierre.
“At the same time, I wanted to try out the drivers I had lined up for the future. It’s not that I had an issue with Esteban or that I preferred Jack.
“I don’t look at nationality, whether they’re Turkish, French, Japanese… I simply have to choose the best driver.”
Alpine 2025 driver line-up
Despite Pierre Gasly and Jack Doohan being announced as Alpine’s driver pairing for the 2025 season, rumors have been circulating about Franco Colapinto joining the team.
The Argentine driver showed some great performances with Williams after he replaced Logan Sargeant ahead of the Italian Grand Prix in Monza.
These performances sparked rumors of Colapinto being in talks with several teams, including Alpine.
Briatore states that he can “guarantee” that Alpine F1 will start the 2025 season with Gasly and Doohan following the departure of Ocon. However, that doesn’t mean they will finish the season with the same line-up, as the 78-year-old isn’t above replacing a driver if they are not performing.
The Australian driver had solid results on the ‘Road to F1’ without setting the world alight. He is going to face big scrutiny once the 2025 season kicks off in Melbourne.
“The only thing that’s certain is death.
“We’ll start the year with Pierre and Jack, I can guarantee you that. After that, we’ll see how the season progresses.
“I have to put the team in a position to deliver results. And the driver is the one who has to complete the work of nearly 1,000 people behind him.
“Everyone works for just two people. If a driver isn’t performing, isn’t bringing me results, I’ll replace them. You can’t be emotional in F1.”
Briatore on Pierre Gasly
Briatore was full of praise for Pierre Gasly, who finished the season P10 in the driver standings as the Frenchman was outstanding in the closing part of the season.
The Italian credits Gasly with the team accomplishing P6 in the Constructors’ due to his points scoring finishes towards the end of the campaign, including P5 and P7 finishes in the dry.
“Pierre has done an extraordinary job.
“He surprised me a lot this year. He is truly our driver. I’m really grateful for him.
“He completely changed his attitude this season. He had no accidents. We managed to finish sixth, it’s thanks to him.
“I’m confident Pierre will continue his excellent work and that Jack Doohan will rise to his level.”
Co-Author: Syrine Ferchichi
