Esteban Ocon: “It was a good day as a team and we look pretty competitive”

Esteban Ocon continued his last strong form by finishing third fastest in training Grand Prix of Holland on Friday even though he knows there is still hard work to be done this weekend.

the Alpine F1 team Driver, the surprise winner of the Hungarian Grand Prix shortly before the summer break, had the weekend on the Zandvoort race track Seventh fastest in the morning, although he had a moment off the track and another moment in which he did not notice it Lando Norris came through and hit the McLaren F1 team Driver on the grass.

But Ocon was the early pacemaker that afternoon and was only beaten by the two of them Scuderia Ferrari Driver at the end of the day and he is hoping for more performance on Saturday if he wants to fight for a place at the top of the grid in qualifying.

“It was a fun Friday and it was great to learn this route in a Formula 1 car,” said Ocon. “It was a lot of grip, a lot of Gs, undulation and overcoming the steep turns, which was a lot of fun overall.

“It’s been a good day as a team and we look pretty competitive, but we know qualifying counts. I experienced that in FP1 when I had a close conversation with Lando [Norris]. It was a bit tight for comfort but nothing happened in the end and we move on.

“The car did really well today and I’m sure we can find more. It’s a small track, narrow in places and it will be a challenge to cope with the traffic in qualifying. “

“I don’t think it will be an easy weekend” – Fernando Alonso

Teammate Fernando Alonso finished sixth in both sessions but the Spaniard doesn’t think it will be an easy weekend for everyone on the updated Zandvoort circuit.

The seasoned Spaniard expects traffic to play a big role during Saturday’s qualifying in the Netherlands. Practice is expected to be an important part of the weekend as overtaking will likely be difficult on race day.

“It was another challenging day for us but it was the same for everyone with all the little incidents and red flags all day,” said Alonso. “We have to analyze everything now and make sure that we are in top form tomorrow.

“I don’t think it will be an easy weekend and that the traffic will be difficult to deal with in qualifying. I like the route, it is completely different in some places and the banked turns are fun.

“The atmosphere is also great. Let’s see what tomorrow brings. “

Fernando Alonso finished sixth in both Friday sessions – Credit: Alpine F1 Team