Ocon to race Gasly’s lighter Alpine in Barcelona

Alpine has agreed to put Esteban Ocon at the wheel of Pierre Gasly’s lighter chassis this weekend in Barcelona.

With Ocon and the crisis-struck Renault factory team splitting at the end of the year, all semblance of harmony evaporated at the most recent races in Monaco and Canada.

In Montreal, Ocon even revealed that he has been carrying a handicap "for a while".

"It’s been a few races now since my car has been much heavier than Pierre’s," he said.

Speaking in Barcelona on Thursday, fellow Frenchman Gasly insists he has "no relationship" whatsoever with his teammate. But Ocon, for his part, says his main priority now is "equal treatment".

"Bruno (Famin) also promised us that," he added.

Therefore, Alpine has assigned Gasly’s lighter chassis to 27-year-old Ocon for the Spanish GP.

"In the interests of equal treatment, we have agreed on a rotation principle," Ocon confirmed. "So I will be driving Pierre’s car this weekend."

He said he will remain at the wheel of the car at least for the Spain-Austria-Silverstone triple header.

As for Ocon’s next move in F1, he did not sound at all worried about 2025 when asked on Thursday, amid solid speculation that he will join Oliver Bearman at Haas next year.

"The most important thing is an environment where you feel supported, where you feel good and where everyone is working towards the same goal," he said.