Esteban Ocon and Alpine to part ways at the end of 2024 F1 season

Following an opening-lap crash with teammate Pierre Gasly at the Monaco Grand Prix, there was much speculation that Esteban Ocon would be benched for the upcoming Canadian Grand Prix by Alpine. Despite the speculation and talk of “consequences” from Alpine Team Principal Bruno Famin, Ocon will be back in the A524 for this weekend’s race in Montreal.

The 2025 season, however, is a much different story.

Alpine and Ocon announced on Monday that the two sides have agreed to “part ways” at the end of the current season. Ocon was on the final year of a contract with Alpine, and there was growing speculation that the driver’s time with the French team would be coming to an end.

The parties made that official on Monday.

“It’s been a significant period of my life to be racing at this team in Formula 1. While I’ve been here for five years as a full-time racing driver, my professional career started at Enstone back when I was a teenager, so it will always be a special place for me. We have had some great moments together, some tough moments as well, and I am certainly grateful to everyone at the team for these memorable times,” said Ocon in Alpine’s press release. “I will announce my plans very soon but, in the meantime, my full focus is on delivering on track for this team and having a successful remainder of the season.”

“We would like to firstly thank Esteban for his commitment to the team for the past five years. During his time, we have celebrated some fantastic moments together, the best of which coming at the 2021 Hungarian Grand Prix with a memorable race win,” stated Famin. “We still have 16 races to complete in 2024 together with a clear objective: to continue to work tirelessly as a team to push for the best on-track results. We wish Esteban the very best for the next chapter of his driving career when that moment comes.”

Ocon’s portion of the statement teases that the driver already has a spot lined up for the 2025 season, which is sure to touch off further speculation about the 2025 driver lineup. Could he have a spot with Mercedes or Williams in his future, as he was once a member of the Mercedes junior program? Might a move to Haas or Sauber — soon to become Audi — be his destination?

And the news will also kick off conjecture about who will take his spot at Alpine. Jack Doohan is the team’s reserve driver, and he could be in line for a full-time spot on the F1 grid. Mick Schumacher, who has experience as a full-time driver with Haas, drives for Alpine on the endurance racing side, but could return to F1 with the team.

Or do they have another driver in mind for that spot next season?

One thing is for sure: Media day at the Canadian Grand Prix is sure to be fascinating.