Ocon backstory: Esteban was at Williams to replace Logan Sargeant. Backstory on the negotiation between Esteban Ocon and Williams .

In recent days, an incident revealed by former Alpine manager Marcin Budkowski during an interview with Viaplay Poland has generated much curiosity. Before last year’s British Grand Prix, Esteban Ocon visited the Williams headquarters in Grove—a visit that Alpine discovered in real-time using the GPS system installed in the vehicle provided to their driver. Satellite data revealed that Ocon spent five hours at the Williams facility.

This story has been linked to the turbulent conclusion of the relationship between Alpine and Ocon, which ended with Jack Doohan’s early debut at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. In reality, at the time of Ocon’s visit to Williams, his relationship with Alpine had already been severed for over a month, a separation hastened by an incident during the Monaco Grand Prix where Ocon and Gasly collided—a crash for which the team blamed Esteban.

Esteban Ocon’s visit to Grove was associated with a potential negotiation for the 2025 season, but it was actually tied to the tense atmosphere within Alpine after the Monaco weekend. The French team’s management had considered ending the contract immediately, a possibility they later dismissed due to fears that Ocon might join a direct competitor.

Williams, on the other hand, was clearly ready to welcome Esteban (in place of Logan Sargeant) had Alpine decided to terminate the agreement early. The visit to Grove was organized to allow the French driver to test the driving position in the FW46. However, the situation only materialized on the eve of the Yas Marina weekend, by which time Ocon had already signed with Haas, and Williams had promoted Franco Colapinto to the role of lead driver.

This year, Esteban Ocon no longer has to worry about being tracked by his team during his travels. Last month, Esteban treated himself to a Ferrari 296 GTB with the ‘Fiorano’ package, a set of modifications designed to make the car more track-focused and fully exploit the 830 horsepower produced by its 3-liter twin-turbo V6 engine paired with an electric motor. A supercar of his own, which not only provides driving pleasure but also ensures his movements remain private.