Esteban Ocon signs three-year contract extension with Alpine

Paris [France], June 16 : Esteban Ocon on Wednesday committed to Alpine by signing a three-year contract that will keep him at the French Formula 1 team until at least the end of 2024.
The Frenchman joined the outfit, when they were known as Renault, at the start of the 2020 campaign and after a slow start, scored his maiden F1 podium at the penultimate race of the season in Bahrain.
"I'm delighted to continue with the team beyond this year and it's a fantastic feeling to secure my future with Alpine. We've been progressing well together since I joined the team and I aim to continue that journey going forward," Ocon said in an official release.
"There are great challenges ahead of us, especially with the new regulations in 2022. I'm sure we can hit our targets by working hard together and continuing the story. I often think back to the Sakhir Grand Prix last year with the podium, and it motivates me to create more special memories like that. I'm really looking forward to the next chapter but, for now, we're very much focused on this season and taking each race as it comes," he added.
This year, the 24-year-old has on average outperformed his more decorated double world teammate Fernando Alonso, who returned to F1 this year after a two-year hiatus, scoring points four times in six Grands Prix.
On the eve of the French Grand Prix, his and the team's home race, it was announced Ocon - whose relationship with the Enstone team began back in 2010 when he was a Lotus junior driver - had inked a new deal.