Villeneuve does not see the “interest” of the Ocon/Gasly duo at Alpine, after the “enormous loss” of Alonso
At a time when winter testing is allowing us to observe several drivers taking their first steps with a new team, the 1997 world champion doesn't see how Alpine will be able to compensate for the departure of Fernando Alonso, who has left to replace Sebastian Vettel at Aston Martin.
After the departure of Fernando Alonso and the Oscar Piastri saga, the Alpine team managed to bounce back by signing Pierre Gasly from AlphaTauri. Alongside his compatriot Esteban Ocon, they together form a kind of French team in Formula 1 for the Dieppe-based team.
However, Jacques Villeneuve is not convinced that the dynamics will remain the same after the departure of the two-time Spanish world champion.
I think Alpine will be very sad to no longer have Alonso. It’s a huge loss. He was really pushing the team forward. And by doing that, he was also helping Esteban be competitive and so on. Now, you have two French drivers in a French team in an international sport. I don’t see the point.
The (likely) last chapter of Alonso and the turning point for Stroll
Lance Stroll begins his seventh season in F1, and swaps a quadruple world champion for a double one with Alonso. Villeneuve believes that the Asturian Bull will bring a lot to Aston Martin, provided that he doesn’t upset Lance or his father, the owner of the British team.
Asked about how Alonso will fare with Aston Martin’s politics, Villeneuve responds:
« I don’t know. It’s the same scenario that has been seen in the past, in this environment where a world champion is taken to do… like when Vettel was taken, Vettel was already finished, he was not the Vettel of his winning days. So the goal, the key, is to have a world champion who is not fast enough, so that the other driver looks good, but that won’t be the case with Alonso. »
I therefore do not know how the balance will be achieved, how the atmosphere will remain, but obviously, Alonso has always been a very tough guy when things don’t go his way.
Villeneuve seems surprised by Alonso’s “positive” comments about Stroll, especially after their clash in Austin last year. For him, in a similar situation in the past, he would have lost it.
He could actually have calmed down a bit and that could work, and if he manages not to upset Lance and the team, he will be very useful for the team to move forward.
With a teammate who is really on top of their game, Villeneuve believes it will be truly interesting to see how Lance Stroll performs this year.
(D) Obviously, the team, the engineering, is capable of making a good car. We saw glimpses of speed last year in the car. Now that Alonso is in charge, the whole team could improve, both cars could reach a level where they would fight for podiums every week, we don’t know, we have to wait and see. But definitely, it should be a great help for the team.
