Alpine boss Oakes ‘really proud’ of Ocon and Gasly after Sao Paulo podium as he voices confidence for final triple header

Alpine boss Oliver Oakes has explained just how much the squad’s double podium result in the Sao Paulo Grand Prix means to them, with the Briton left “really proud” of Esteban Ocon and Pierre Gasly for a performance in which they were only beaten by Max Verstappen.
In what proved to be a frenetic rain-affected race at the Autodromo Jose Carlos Pace, Ocon found himself in the lead after opting to stay out on track during a Virtual Safety Car period – with Gasly climbing up to third, having also gambled on remaining on track.
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When a red flag was subsequently thrown, the duo were still in these positions when the race was restarted. And while Ocon initially held onto P1 ahead of Verstappen, another Safety Car restart saw Verstappen overtake and storm ahead to victory.
Despite the challenging conditions, Ocon and Gasly kept their cool and went on to score a remarkable double rostrum, lifting Alpine from ninth to sixth in the constructors’ standings in the process.
During a chat on the F1 Nation podcast, Oakes – who became Alpine’s new Team Principal in August – admitted that the result was particularly special given the ups and down that the team have faced in recent times.
“I can’t take credit!” said Oakes. “As we know, it’s a brilliant team and I haven’t been here that long. I said since I arrived that the team had been in a difficult period for a little while. They had a tough start to the season, but even before that, and I think today is a big result for them.
“Actually, the signs were there already just before the shutdown and just after with a little bit of momentum. Zandvoort, my first race, they made me look good getting a point there. Then we had a tricky couple of races which sort of showed the true picture of some of our limitations in the team with the car and our performance.
“I think Austin with an upgrade showed we’ve got a bit of pace there, and that was a bit of a hard one because we left empty-handed after a good qualifying. But these last couple of events, it’s been really nice to show we have got some pace.
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“We were all a little bit wounded after Baku, when a competitor [Williams] got quite a few points, and credit to them and the job they’re doing, but it’s nice today to have our own strong result as well.”
Prior to that final restart, Ocon looked to be holding a decent gap to Verstappen in P1 – but could the Frenchman have held on and won the race?
“I was slightly disappointed when Max breezed past, I’m not going to lie!” Oakes conceded. “People will say you need a reality check, but obviously you do this job because you want to win. You don’t turn up because you don’t want to [win]. Nobody likes walking to the back of the grid.
“These past few weekends, we’re moving forward. But I think in the race today, there were moments where I thought, ‘Okay, we can do this,’ but you have to also say Max is phenomenal. In those conditions, he is another level.
“Today, nobody can take away from him. That was a championship drive. But on my side, I’m really proud of Pierre and Esteban. They didn’t put a foot wrong. They both soaked up so much pressure and actually they had real pace. It was only Max who got the legs on us, so strong day.”
Now the team will face the challenge of maintaining their momentum into the final triple header, which begins with the Las Vegas Grand Prix on November 21-23.
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In terms of how confident he feels for the last three races, Oakes commented: “I think qualifying in Austin was strong, we struggled a little bit in the race. I think Mexico was a good weekend in the points. I think here, in the Sprint race in the dry with Pierre, we had some pace.
“I think in qualifying, we were very close to the back of a Mercedes and at the front of that midfield battle, so definitely we feel confident. It is tough and you can see, weekend to weekend, the swings in performance and teams.
“I think really, we just have to be humble and take it one race at a time. I do feel confident. Since I arrived, everyone is so motivated and this team does get a bit of its fair share of stick, people putting the knife in on a podcast and all that sort of stuff, but they are pushing really hard. You can see that at Enstone and Viry, and here on track, and they deserve it.”