Alonso made his comeback to grand prix racing this yr with Alpine, having left F1 on the finish of 2018 following a profession the place he earned a fame as being fairly ruthless together with his team-mates.
For Ocon, the prospect of going up in opposition to the two-time F1 world champion was going to be a reasonably large problem on the observe – and he was nicely conscious that it could not have been straightforward to deal with out of the automobile too.
However he says considerations that have been aired to him by numerous individuals in regards to the prospect for hassle in being Alonso’s team-mate proved very broad of the mark. As a substitute, he says the pair have gelled extremely nicely.
“I had plenty of issues coming from many alternative individuals, warning me and telling me what they heard from the surface and all that,” mentioned Ocon, when requested by Autosport in regards to the relationship with Alonso.
“Nevertheless it must be mentioned, I haven’t got any of these points. Contained in the workforce the environment is nice and we’re working all collectively, sharing info as we have to.
“Okay, we’re not combating for one and two on this planet championship, so possibly it could be completely different.
“However now, there have not been any of these [problems]. I am glad to be to be working with Fernando, I feel we’ve got a great relationship and it has been going nice.”
Fernando Alonso, Alpine A521, Esteban Ocon, Alpine A521
Photograph by: Jerry Andre / Motorsport Images
After Ocon’s triumph ultimately weekend’s Hungarian GP, Alonso caught round in parc ferme to congratulate his team-mate on his maiden F1 triumph.
And it was not misplaced on Ocon himself about the critical role Alonso played in holding up Lewis Hamilton for a number of laps within the closing phases to assist delay the world champion’s potential cost to the entrance.
Talking after the race, Ocon mentioned: “I wish to say a particular because of Fernando who has been combating like a lion in that race, as a result of that most likely contributed additionally to giving us a niche, giving us a little bit of a breather.
“I mentioned it to many alternative press on the market, I acquired plenty of unhealthy feedback about Fernando earlier than he joined the workforce and I inform you that we’re forming an ideal duo collectively, we’re pushing the workforce in the identical course. Hopefully it’s the primary win of many for us and hopefully we are able to share a podium in a short while.”