Mercedes Young Driver Academy boss Gwen Lagrue has revealed the marque still manages Esteban Ocon’s Formula 1 career despite him not being involved in its set-up.
Mercedes took advantage of its ties with the now-defunct Manor team midway through 2016 to hand Ocon, who was a member of its driver development scheme, his F1 debut.
The Frenchman progressed to the Silverstone squad, then known as Force India, and impressed across two seasons up against the hugely experienced Sergio Perez.
But he was not retained as a consortium led by Lawrence Stroll completed a takeover of the operation and provided a drive for his son, Lance, to leave Ocon on the sidelines.
After taking up a position as Mercedes’ reserve driver, the Brackley side’s Team Principal Toto Wolff orchestrated a seat for Ocon at Renault, where he’s remained since.
Partnered with Fernando Alonso between 2021-22, Ocon stacked up respectively against the two-time champion and logged his maiden victory in the 2021 Hungarian GP.
Lagrue believes that Ocon’s stint alongside Alonso, who departed at the end of 2022 to move to Aston Martin, compelled him to raise his game to a whole new platform.
“To be honest, in his two years with Alonso as a partner, what Esteban did was quite solid,” Lagrue told The Race.
“We are not always talking about winning or getting on the podium, but his work was very good. I think Fernando took him to a limit that he did not know and continues to improve.”
Ocon will enter his fifth consecutive season with the Enstone squad – branded as Alpine to promote its sportscar brand – in 2024.
However, his contract with the Anglo-French outfit will expire at the end of this year, and Lagrue has disclosed that Ocon’s career prospects are still guided by Mercedes.
“Esteban remains closely linked to Mercedes. He is an Alpine driver and is fully committed to them, but we continue to manage his career,” Lagrue admitted.
“There are only 20 seats in Formula 1 and we are collaborating for the best interests in this sport.
Our relationship with Alpine is very good, as with the rest of the teams, and we try to find the best solution for the team and the driver.”
Mercedes announced last August that both Lewis Hamilton and George Russell had signed extensions to their previous deals to form the team’s driver line-up through 2025.
Meanwhile, Ocon will be aiming to bounce back from a frustrating 2023 season that witnessed him dogged by the brunt of Alpine’s persistent reliability problems.
The 27-year-old was outscored by new team-mate Pierre Gasly, who was handpicked from the Red Bull programme as Alpine’s replacement for the outgoing Alonso.
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