Esteban Ocon of France and Alpine F1 looks on after crashing and retiring from the race during the F1 Grand Prix of Qatar - Source: Getty
Former Renault engineer Mark Lane claimed that the French team were doing "damage limitation PR" after they gave an "invitation" to Esteban Ocon to visit their base at Enstone. The French driver was let go by the Alpine F1 team at the end of the Qatar Grand Prix, where he retired on lap one after crashing into Williams F1 driver Franco Colapinto.
Esteban Ocon's unceremonious exit did not go amiss by the F1 fans as they criticized the French team for not giving the one-time race winner a proper farewell in Abu Dhabi.
Speaking with Autosport on Thursday, Alpine F1 team principal Oliver Oakes extended his invitation for Ocon to visit the factory in Enstone and said:
"Esteban can have a guard of honor if he wants," Oakes said. "He's got to come by, I'm actually serious. Look, people say that [he was harshly treated], but I think it's not really right. At the end of the day, he had an option."
