Finished the 2022 season of Formula 1 and digested the output of Fernando Alonso of Alpine Course to Aston Martin, Esteban Ocon he sharpened his knives and directly attacked the one who had been his partner for two seasons.
“98% of the work fell on my back and 2% on yours. He was overworked. He did all the development of the simulator, the marketing…”, said the Frenchman, affirming what his boss would later confirm: the Asturian does not like the simulator.
“This year, with a new car, there was a lot of work to do and Fernando is not someone who likes to do –simulator work. But that doesn’t change what an incredible driver he is,” Laurent Rossi, the team’s CEO, said days later.
Well, that mentality of a two-time champion like Alonso is the antithesis of another like Verstappenwho prefers that Daniel Ricciardothird pilot of Red Bull by 2023, do not work.
“I don’t want a test pilot to take over of all simulator sessions, as they do on other computers. I want to do it myself, because everyone has their own driving style”, he explained in ‘Speedweek’.
“Our simulator is one of the best in this sport. The days are very long, but it’s definitely worth it,” he added.
“It helps me keep my focus. You can’t do much more when you’re at home and I enjoy sim racing.”
As the proverb says, each teacher has his booklet. Alonso has not done badly in his long career ‘passing’ the simulator; Verstappen is not doing badly focusing on that aspect either. Of course, his anger is not contained even in the factory, and proof of this is his last anger at the recent virtual 24 Hours of Le Mans.
