Esteban Ocon has revealed that his 2021 Renault teammate Fernando Alonso lost no time getting in touch with him to talk about the future.
Alonso will return to Formula 1 next season with the French outfit, replacing McLaren-bound Daniel Ricciardo, to form a talented line-up with Ocon, a blend of experience and youth that will hopefully power Renault up the grid.
The young Frenchman was among the first people contacted by the two-time world champion after Wednesday's announcement.
"He's very, very motivated," Ocon said. " had him on the text yesterday, and he's very keen to come back.
"We just chatted about the opportunity there is in the next years, and how the field is close at the moment. I think there is a good chance of doing well if we work well."
Racing alongside Alonso hasn't been an easy task for most of the Spaniard's teammates in the past. But Ocon has no inhibitions about going up against the intrepid F1 veteran.
"So far what I know is that Fernando is a very cool guy," he said.
"I know we've chatted a lot of times when he was on the track and we also had quite a few text messages before he came. But now again he's very keen to come back.
"He is very keen to make the project move forward. He's very aware of what we need to do and what the chances are, and, you know, I'm pretty sure we can have a great collaboration together.
"Working with a legend like him is a fantastic benchmark for me you know. It would be two strong teammates with Daniel and Fernando for me, so on that side I'm very happy."
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