F1 News
Former world champion proud of race winner Ocon: 'He will always remember that'
- GPblog.com
Alpine probably thought a victory for Esteban Ocon was impossible, prior to the Hungarian Grand Prix. After Mercedes' strategic error, that ideology suddenly became a reality. The Frenchman took the victory by keeping Sebastian Vettel behind him. His team is very happy with the performance in Hungary.
"I am very happy for Esteban. He has had some difficult weeks," explained team advisor Alain Prost in conversation with Canal Plus. The Frenchman expects Ocon to grow from the victory. "When you finally win a Grand Prix, you actually go to a new dimension".
Ocon gets new status within Alpine
"He now knows he can start eighth and still win. Every time he starts a race, he will think about that". Prost hopes Ocon's victory will bring calm to the team. "It also creates a different status within the team. It will create stability in everyone.”
Indeed, for a long time there were doubts whether Ocon was the right driver for Alpine and with the contract extension the French team showed they have faith in Ocon, but results were not achieved until Hungary. "There was a lot of criticism when he signed the three-year contract. With Fernando we will have a duo that complements each other and that is very positive," Prost concluded.