Esteban Ocon was pleased to see his A522 return to him undamaged after the BWT Alpine F1 Team gave Jack Doohan a run in the first practice session of the Mexico City Grand Prix on Friday.
Ocon had previously given up a free practice outing whilst racing for the Sahara Force India F1 Team back in 2017 only to see Alfonso Celis Jr. crash, but Doohan kept his nose clean and gave the Frenchman his car back intact for the second session.
The Frenchman utilized the 2022 Pirelli tires to good use to place third fastest before he switched to testing the 2023 prototype tires under the leadership of Formula 1’s sole tire manufacturer, and he has confidence of a good weekend for Alpine at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez.
“It was good to test ourselves on this challenging track, which is quite low on grip but with long fast straights and challenging corners,” said Ocon. “I didn’t run in the first session with Jack driving my car.
“I’ve been in his position before, so well done to him on doing his first session. For Free Practice 2, we completed a lot of laps where we were able to learn quite a lot.
“It was slightly interrupted, but we have plenty of data to go through tonight and I’m looking forward to seeing what we can do across the next two days.”
“We head into tomorrow feeling confident of a strong result” – Fernando Alonso
team mate Fernando Alonso felt it was a solid day on his side of the garage, but he knows there is a need to adjust to the challenging conditions around the Mexico City track.
The veteran Spaniard, who has three races remaining with Alpine before he switches to the Aston Martin Aramco Cognizant F1 Team in 2023, was a sixth in the first session on Friday, the only session where everyone was running the 2022 Pirelli tires.
He was eleventh fastest during the tire test in the second session, and he remains confident that Alpine can challenge for points and continue their fight to beat the McLaren F1 team to fourth place in the Constructors’ Championship this year.
“I’d say it was a solid practice for us today and it’s nice to be back here in Mexico,” Alonso said. “The track in Mexico City always has varying levels of grip and the unique high altitude puts pressure on both the car and driver.
“We need to adjust and adapt to these challenging conditions, which we will no doubt face all weekend. Overall, we completed our Friday programme, and we head into tomorrow feeling confident of a strong result.”
Fernando Alonso has confidence of a strong weekend for Alpine in Mexico – Credit: BWT Alpine F1 Team
