Despite the huge history and immense complexity of Formula 1 as a sport, sometimes it seems like nothing riles up F1 fans more than docudrama series Drive to Survive.

You either love it or loathe it. Either you binged it all on Friday night or you refuse to watch it. The drama is either a bit of fun or deeply disrespectful.

Whatever your personal taste, there’s no doubting its influence.

But there’s also no doubt that to achieve its aims to crack open the sport to new audiences, DTS has taken certain liberties with its storytelling and even employed some sneaky editing to get its message across.

Some tricks get past even the most eagle-eyed fans, but one in particular has come to the attention of Esteban Ocon — not that he’s proposing to do anything about it.

Fernando Alonso, meanwhile, is still very much up to his old tricks, taking a crack at his former Alpine team before the season has even started — though testing suggests he may in fact get the last laugh for a change.

And Williams has finally got a new team principal, with James Vowles starting work late last month and setting some priorities for the struggling backmarker.

OCON CRITICISES DRIVE TO SURVIVE AFTER EDITING TRICK REVEALED

While the newest season of Drive to Survive has won praise for dialling down the hammed-up drama — enough to lure Max Verstappen back to the show after a boycott — it hasn’t completely escaped drama.

Esteban Ocon has taken aim at docudrama producers for some deceptive editing practices that he says makes him look like he was over the moon after scoring four points for a paltry eighth at his home grand prix.

“It’s reflecting reality but in a strange way,” Ocon said, per PlanetF1. “For example, I finished P8 in France and I said [in the show], ‘This was just like a win today’.

“I never said that. I think I probably said that when we finished fifth in Austria or fourth in Japan, but not when I finish eighth in France.

“These things feel strange.”

But the Frenchman admitted that losing editorial control was a price he was willing to pay for the success of the show, which has catapulted Formula 1 to new heights of worldwide popularity and has been particularly beneficial for the lesser known midfield teams.

“I don’t complain about that, but I don’t want to make it sound like I’m happy with P8,” he said. “I want to win, I don’t want to finish P8, but it’s fine for those kinds of things.

“I guess it’s part of the show, and we can’t complain about being on such a highly viewed platform,” he said.

“I think it’s awesome. [Drive to Survive] has been with us a lot this year so far, coming to many different events so we’re probably going to feature quite a bit next season.”

ALONSO TAKES DIG AT ALPINE AHEAD OF MOOTED ASTON LEAP

Fernando Alonso has taken a swipe at Alpine ahead of the start of the season as speculation mounts that Aston Martin could be set to jump the French team at the head of the midfield.

Alonso has a history of burning bridges as he moves through the F1 paddock. The Spaniard has changed teams seven times and even found himself out of the sport in 2019–20 as attempted to manoeuvre himself into a competitive car.

Alpine famously learnt of Fernando Alonso’s decision to leave the team via Aston Martin’s press release on the first day of the last year’s mid-season break, setting in motion a month of woe for the French team.

The 41-year-old’s move to a team further down the grid raised eyebrows, but Alonso says it was the team culture that most enticed him into the blockbuster three-year switch.

“Everyone here is humble, everyone here is hungry for success,” he said last month before testing. “Maybe they didn’t experience fighting for wins, championships or podiums every weekend, but they trust themselves, they have self-confidence and they know they can achieve that.”

But he couldn’t resist taking a shot at his previous employed in making the point.

“This is different compared to any team that I joined in the last few occasions where maybe they had success in the past and were just in a comfortable position — they were fourth and happy with fourth, fifth and happy with fifth. If we were seventh, there were celebrations.

“Here there are no celebrations until we win, and this is very appealing.”

Alonso may get the last laugh in the end too, with the Aston Martin car looking extremely impressive during the three-day test. Most observers have the team at the top of the midfield and some even have the car competing with Mercedes for third.

Alpine’s form was difficult to read, but consensus suggests it’s on target to finish fourth.

JAMES VOWLES TAKES THE REINS AT WILLIAMS, SETS MAIN PRIORITY

Former Mercedes strategy chief James Vowles has finally got his feet under the team principals desk at Williams following a period of gardening leave and has set himself the task of recruiting a new technical director as his first priority.

Williams undertook a management clean-out at the end of last season, dismissing principal Jost Capito, technical boss François-Xavier Demaison and head of aero David Wheater after an underwhelming start to life under new regulations.

It marks the beginning of yet another rebuilding process for the historic team, and Vowles said his energies were directed towards having the right structure in place for the new rules due in 2026.

“I think the primary thing is that we don’t have the structure in place technically, obviously, as a result of the changes that were made,” Vowles said, per the F1 website.

“Number one is let’s put in place a proper set of structures, in terms of technical director, head of aero. Clearly an organisation needs those to move forward.

“There’s a strong organisation in place and it’s acting without a TD as we speak today. There’s a car on track, it’s built, [and] they did an incredible job over the winter to achieve that.

“What’s clear is this is not about short-term putting someone in place, this is about [the] long term and making sure we have the right person in place.

“We’re not going to rush to a decision. The key is making sure we find the person that fits the organisation for the long term.”

Vowles said he was already appreciating the differences between minnow Williams and the behemoth Mercedes as he adjusted to the new role.

“It’s just understanding where Williams is,” he said. “I had the benefit of being in an organisation where if you required something, you asked for it, you were provided [with] it. We had everything you could possibly imagine.

“It’s a stark contrast to where I am now, especially in the environment of a cost cap, where it’s difficult to request or even pay for what you need.”

NORRIS SAYS PIASTRI IS ‘OPPOSITE OF DANIEL’ AS DEBUT LOOMS

Lando Norris has praised new teammate Oscar Piastri’s work ethic ahead of his F1 debut but says fans shouldn’t expect a like-for-like replacement with Daniel Ricciardo.

Piastri’s long-awaited first season in Formula 1 will inevitably generate comparisons with Ricciardo not only for how he fares in the tricky McLaren but also given his position as the sport’s only Australian in a full-time seat.

Ricciardo has long been one of the paddock’s most popular personalities, with his outgoing larrikin personality earning him worldwide popularity and giving Australian motorsport a fresh identity.

But Norris says Piastri is bringing an “opposite” vibe to the team as the 21-year-old keeps his head down ahead of his maiden race.

“Oscar’s [12] years younger than Daniel, but he’s quiet,” Norris said, per RacingNews365. “I think he’s a little bit the opposite of Daniel at the minute.

“Of course it’s his first year in Formula 1, so there’s a lot of pressure.

“But it’s a big moment for him, so I’m sure he looks forward to it.”

Norris has only praise for Piastri, particularly after a difficult pre-season test for McLaren.

“He’s been doing a good job for the whole team,” he said. “[He’s] been getting some good laps in and giving good feedback.

“[He’s a] lovely guy and we’ve been getting on well so far, so [I] look forward to it.”

LANCE STROLL’S BAHRAIN GP PARTICIPATION IN DOUBT

Speculation is continuing to mount about Lance Stroll’s fitness ahead of the first grand prix of the season after the Aston Martin driver injured his wrist in a bicycle accident last week.

Stroll was a late withdrawal from pre-season testing after the incident, with reserve driver and reigning Formula 2 champion Felipe Drugovich standing in alongside Fernando Alonso.

The team has since confirmed that Drugovich will be on standby in Bahrain should Stroll be unable to make a full recovery in time for practice this Friday.

Team boss Mike Krack has been cagey about describing Stroll’s injury in any great detail and putting a time line on his return, but paddock speculation has mounted that the Canadian has broken his right wrist.

Will Buxton reported on F1 TV that Stroll saw Spanish doctor Xavier Mir for an assessment. Dr Mir is a renowned arm, hand and wrist traumatologist well known in MotoGP circles.

Surgery would likely keep Stroll out for at least the first race, though he’s reportedly due to get in the team simulator this week to evaluate the strength in his wrist.

Fortunately for the 24-year-old, the first three grand prix of the season run over six weeks. If he needs to spend time on the sidelines, he’ll have a fortnight to recover for the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix and a month to find fitness ahead of Australia.

Aston Martin is due to decide on this weekend’s driver line-up imminently.

ALPHATAURI FACING RELOCATION OR SALE IN BOLD NEW PLAN

Red Bull Racing sister team AlphaTauri could leave Italy or be sold to new owners under plans by the energy drinks giant to cut costs.

Whereas Red Bull Racing has become a profitable racing team under the cost cap, the parent company is still tipping money into Faenza to supplement AlphaTauri’s lesser prize money and sponsorship income.

Germany’s Auto Moto und Sport has reported expenditure on the team is now under the microscope by Oliver Mintzlaff, who took control of Red Bull’s sport investments after the death of company founder Dietrich Mateschitz last year.

One option reportedly under consideration is moving AlphaTauri from Italy to the UK, where greater synergy with Red Bull Racing could save cash. While the team currently buys some parts from Milton Keynes, there is scope to further exploit that relationship in the Haas-Ferrari model.

But if the cost of relocation is considered unattractive, Red Bull will reportedly consider offloading the team completely.

A sale would come at an opportune time for any team currently bidding to join the grid.

An 11th entry would be liable to pay a US$200 million (A$297 million) anti-dilution fee just to join the grid. While Red Bull would ask for considerably more than that for AlphaTauri, buying an existing team would save the cost of setting up a new operation from scratch.

Red Bull motorsport adviser Helmut Marko said he wouldn’t comment on rumours but admitted that the Austrian company was dissatisfied with AlphaTauri’s results.

“That they are not happy with AlphaTauri’s ninth place, that is understandable,” he said, per RacingNews365.

“If on one side you have a team like Red Bull, which wins the world championship, while its sister team comes ninth, it means that synergies are not being used properly.

“Then of course it is normal to make considerations, and the shareholders ask for accountability.”