Ocon signs with Alpine: What are the implications for talents like Zhou?

With the confirmation of Esteban Ocon at Alpine F1 Team, there seems to be even less room in Formula 1. What does this mean for the young talent?

The Alpine Academy supports several young drivers. The program includes Guanyu Zhou, Oscar Piastri and Christian Lundgaard. Zhou is currently in his third season in Formula 2 with UNI-Virtuosi. Piastri won last year's Formula 3 championship and will make his F2 debut this year. Lungaard is also in his second F2 season already.

With the arrival of Fernando Alonso and the extension of Ocon's contract it seems that there will be no place for young drivers at the team in the near future. It is frustrating because there is a lot of talent but little place in F1. Especially for Zhou, who is already in his third Formula 2 season, waiting for a chance in Formula 1 is no fun. Earlier this year, he said he was aiming for an F1 seat in 2022.

In the past, many F2 drivers who finished in the top three were able to move straight on to Formula 1, think of Charles Leclerc, Lando Norris and George Russell. With many new young talents entering F1, there is less and less chance that there will be room for junior drivers. With their current driver line-up, Alpine is looking for security in the future.