But why would Ocon do it unless Alpine want to cut him loose? He's pretty much even-stevens with Gasly so unless they have a gamble on a junior like Doohan who they might think is better, it'd be a strange choice to not renew him.
Because Alpine seems like a complete dumpster fire from an organisational and car/engine design point of view. I'd bet that Alpine would rather hang onto its current pairing as more uncertainty is the last thing they need right now.
But why would Ocon do it unless Alpine want to cut him loose? He's pretty much even-stevens with Gasly so unless they have a gamble on a junior like Doohan who they might think is better, it'd be a strange choice to not renew him.