Alpine “ready to react” to F1 driver market if Esteban Ocon or Pierre Gasly leave

Alpine F1 boss Bruno Famin is prepared to be active in the driver market should either Esteban Ocon and Pierre Gasly decide to leave the team.

Alpine’s two current drivers are out of contract at the end 2024, with F1 silly season still ongoing.

Ocon has been mooted as a possible replacement for Lewis Hamilton, while both French drivers have been linked with Audi.

They are among 10 drivers on the grid who are out of contract at the end of the year, meaning there could still be a lot of movement.

In an interview with F1.com, Famin explained that while Alpine are happy with their driver pairing, the team is “ready to react” to any possible departures.

“We are happy with our drivers, and our drivers are happy with us,” he said. “We are talking to them regularly. Let’s see what we can do in the future. There are ups and down, we are in a down but we have a strong project with a long term vision.

“We have a good strength for the 2026 project – we are a manufacturer, we are developing the PU – which is on track, we can optimise everything.

“We have a project which doesn’t need to convince them [to stay]. I would like to use this opportunity to thank them. We are in a difficult position. It is not the start of the season we wanted and I appreciate how constructive they are with the team, not only in communications with journalists but also internally.

“When trying to find solutions with the car, both of them are very helpful.”

Despite Alpine’s tough start to the season, the Enstone outfit is still likely going to be an attractive destination given that they are a ‘works outfit’.

Famin admitted the team are exploring their options but also considering their junior drivers - Jack Doohan and Victor Martins.

“We are also looking at the market and we also have our academy where we are developing talents for tomorrow or the future. We have Jack Doohan who is our reserve, Victor Martins in F2.

“We have a wide scope of possibility. We are happy with Esteban, happy with Pierre – but we are ready to react in case something happens. That’s it.

We are not in a rush right now to be frank. We have other problems to solve, other things to improve, and we are not in a rush. We are ready, we are prepared but we are not in rush.”