Bahrain Grand Prix – Gasly, a retirement mixed with positive signals

Pierre Gasly started his Bahrain weekend by doing some typical Pierre Gasly things. Setting the fastest time in the first practice session on Friday, the French driver, as usual, made it to Q3 on Saturday. With a good start that saw him gain a position at the expense of Valtteri Bottas, the Normandy-born driver then engaged in some exciting battles in the middle of the pack before retiring.

AlphaTauri was full of hope arriving in Bahrain. Building on their successful 2021 season, the Italian team aimed to have both of its cars finish in the points. With the 10th fastest time for Pierre Gasly and the 16th for Yuki Tsunoda in qualifying, the hopes of a Top 10 finish naturally fell on the French driver.

The first stint of car number 10 was solid and serious. The French driver managed to avoid the hurdles of the first lap, which had forced him to retire on this circuit last year. Comfortably settled in eighth place after a good battle with Fernando Alonso’s Alpine, Gasly had his sights set on the very surprising Haas of Kevin Magnussen. Despite having a different strategy than the Danish driver, the AlphaTauri driver was set to offer us a beautiful duel against his rival for seventh place.

Unfortunately, his hopes for points went up in smoke, just like his Honda engine whose reliability is worrying, as both Red Bulls, equipped with the same equipment, also had to retire at the end of the race. Without this mishap, the Rouen native would have certainly finished fifth or sixth.

If the reliability issues find solutions quickly, Pierre Gasly will be able to consistently score points on numerous occasions. The Faenza car is fast and has a good race pace. The Frenchman is therefore positive for the upcoming calendar appointments.