Esteban Ocon made his Formula One debut in 2016 with the Manor Racing team, before moving to Force India (now Racing Point) in 2017 as a reserve driver. He was promoted to a full-time racing seat in 2018.

In 2019, Ocon was without a racing seat in Formula One, but served as a reserve driver for Mercedes. He returned to racing in 2020 with the Renault (now Alpine) team, partnering with two-time world champion Fernando Alonso.