The Formula 1 paddock loves a good rivalry story. But few are as personal, as painful, as the one that binds – and separates – Pierre Gasly and Esteban Ocon. Long inseparable, almost like brothers, the two Frenchmen saw their relationship implode, to the point that Gasly himself believes their story could "make a feature film".
Before becoming rivals in F1, gasly et Or with They were omnipresent in each other's lives. A daily, natural, almost familial relationship.
« We spent almost every Wednesday and weekend together.him coming to my place, me going to his place. »
Two parallel paths, the same dreams, the same sacrifices. Until the day everything changed.
gasly He doesn't go into details, but the impact is clear. An incident on the track acted as a trigger.
« It kind of collapsed after that in a dramatic way, which is hard to explain. »
From that point on, trust evaporated. Friendship gave way to a cold, tense, sometimes electric rivalry. Not a spectacular media clash, but something deeper—and therefore more destructive.
Ironically, the two men find themselves teammates at Alpine F1 Team between 2023 and 2024. A professional cohabitation, polite but fraught with unspoken tensions.
And yet, despite this fractured past, they managed to produce one of the finest moments in the team's recent history.
At the 2024 Brazilian Grand Prix, Alpine achieved the unthinkable: place both his cars on the podium.
gasly She still speaks about it with emotion. In the space of eight months, we went from last place to having not one, but two cars on the podium »
« The faces of the team were priceless. It was one of those races that I'm sure I'll consider very special after my career.. »
A suspended moment, where rivalry briefly fades behind the collective achievement.
Pierre Gasly: I have no doubt that in 10 or 20 years, we will be able to sort things out and discuss them in a different way. »
Despite the break, gasly does not rule out a resolution. Not today. Not tomorrow. But one day.
« I have no doubt that in 10 or 20 years, we will be able to sort things out and discuss them in a different way. »
A statement heavy with maturity, but also with resignation. Time, and not F1, may be the only possible mediator.
In a sport obsessed with data, times, and raw performance, the story Gasly–Ocon It reminds us of an often forgotten truth: the Formula 1 It is also a matter of ego, emotions, and invisible wounds.
Two French talents, a shared past, a clean break. And a question that will remain unanswered for a long time: can you really become friends again after having clashed at the top of the world?
Fasten your seatbelts. This story clearly hasn't run its course yet.
