Pierre Gasly targets Esteban Ocon for Canadian GP team order failure

Pierre Gasly felt the Alpine team order in Canada could have worked, but pointed the finger at Esteban Ocon for its failure. The race in Montreal saw the two French drivers make their way through the field and finish in points.

All of this, however, was not without drama, as Ocon, who was running in P9, was ordered to let teammate Gasly pass so that the driver could challenge RB driver Daniel Ricciardo. Ocon was given the order three laps to the end, and after discussion, let Gasly pass with two laps left. By the time Gasly was let by, Ricciardo had already opened up a two-second gap to P9.

Esteban Ocon was furious after the race because not only was Pierre Gasly unable to make any impression on Daniel Ricciardo, but the driver was not given his position back. When questioned about the team order, Gasly shared a very interesting view where he said that Ocon should have ceded position earlier and that cost the chance to challenge Ricciardo.

During the pre-race press conference, Gasly said:

"It was a shame because personally I feel like we had a shot to get eighth place. Unfortunately Esteban took two laps to make the swap and Ricciardo opened that two-second gap."

He added:

"It’s just a shame it wasn't done when the team asked straight away because we had an extra two points to fight for. That’s about it. It's done and we move on and we’ll be fine."

---

Pierre Gasly positive about Alpine's progress

Alpine has had a poor start to the season. The team that was a podium finisher last season can't score points regularly now. This was something that was a side-effect of a major shuffle within the team.

Pierre Gasly was positive about Alpine improving in due time while discussing the team's situation during the aforementioned press conference:

"There have been a lot of improvements in many different departments, which doesn't correlate straight away the week after to more performance at the track."

He added:

"So there have been quite a lot of green lights in different areas, which I believe will help improve and develop the car. But for the time being, obviously we can't see it, we can't see that performance."

The team that was sixth fastest last season and a regular points contender has seen its performances nose dive. It will be hoping to make improvements, and for Gasly's sake, he would hope that the change does end up being positive for the team.

Alpine is in a fix at the moment, with rumors of the team looking for a power unit supplier for 2026. The future of the team is not secure right now, and that should be a concern for anyone looking at a long-term future with the team.