Esteban Ocon warned his ‘irrational red mist’ will come at heavy cost

Martin Brundle believes Esteban Ocon’s future chances in F1 will be damaged by the “irrational red mist” he has when racing his teammates.

Ocon collided with Alpine teammate Pierre Gasly on the opening lap of Sunday’s Monaco Grand Prix after a desperate lunge down the inside at Portier from Ocon, whose car was sent airborne following tyre-to-tyre contact with his fellow Frenchman.

Alpine boss Bruno Famin warned “there will be consequences” and Sky Sports have reported that dropping Ocon for the next race in Canada is “under serious consideration”.

It is not the first time that Ocon has clashed with his F1 teammates. He collided with Sergio Perez when the pair were at Force India/Racing Point and was also criticised by Fernando Alonso following several flashpoints.

And former driver turned commentator Brundle reckons the reputation Ocon is earning could end up harming his chances of securing an F1 seat for next season.

“The opening lap provided several good reminders of how fiercely competitive and desperate the battle is in the second half of the grid,” Brundle wrote in his post-race column for Sky.

“Further round in Portier corner just before the tunnel, literally just before the red flag was unfurled, Esteban Ocon lunged up the inside of his Alpine team-mate Pierre Gasly and they made heavy contact. Ocon would be eliminated from any further proceedings with too much damage, but Gasly would finish in tenth place to score a point for the team.

“Ocon is a fine and fast racing driver, but history clearly demonstrates that he has an irrational red mist when it comes to racing, particularly against his team-mates.

“He has been heavily criticised before by Sergio Perez and Fernando Alonso for his intra-team aggression and contact, and now Gasly too. It will cost Esteban heavily as no front running team would entertain that kind of mentality, or even perhaps any team.

“A driver represents hundreds of hard working and professional people, and hundreds of millions of pounds of investment and sponsorship when driving for an F1 team. You simply can't keep attacking your one team-mate with abandon.”

Ocon took no further part in the race following a red flag suspension, while teammate Gasly went on to score a point in 10th.