Esteban Ocon has had a fascinating career so far in F1. He is well-known in the paddock for being an aggressive racing driver and while he is currently in his last season with Alpine, he has recently named the drivers who he believes, are naturally talented on the current grid.
Esteban Ocon grew up racing against the lights of Charles Leclerc and Max Verstappen during his junior racing days and thus, knows a lot about them. All three of them have been making their trade-in F1 for quite some time, and Ocon feels, Leclerc and Verstappen are the most naturally gifted drivers.
The Dutchman has already amassed three world championships, whereas Leclerc is a five-time Grand Prix winner.
Charles leclerc and Max verstappen. I raced Charles since 2005, and Max 2010 and it doesn't matter what conditions we were, in (they were) always neck and neck or in the top 3, always. Esteban Ocon said in an interview with High Performance
The Frenchman has been longing for a top racing seat for quite some time. He has so far proved himself to be an extremely competent midfield driver, and is desperate to make a step up to one of the top teams like Mercedes.
Esteban Ocon hopeful of taking positive ‘steps’ with Alpine’s lackluster A524
While Ocon has left no stone unturned in showering praise on Leclerc and Verstappen, his 2024 campaign has not got off to the best of starts. Alpine is currently the slowest team on the grid behind the lights of Haas and Stake.
The 27-year-old is well aware of the issues with the A524, but feels, Alpine can make progress.
I think the whole year, you know, we need to improve, step by step. There is a plan to bring updates throughout the year. So, hopefully, after every update, we’re going to make steps. Esteban Ocon said in an interview with racingnews365
At the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, Esteban Ocon had a chance of finishing in the top 10 after pulling off some solid moves. However, after a certain point, he only slipped backward because of the terrible performance output of the A524.
Alpine had an outing to forget at last year’s Australian GP where Ocon and Pierre Gasly crashed out. Keeping this and the ongoing problems of Alpine in view, the upcoming race weekend will see several eyes glued on the French team.
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