Pierre Gasly: « There is no explanation »
Pierre Gasly couldn't put his finger on what contributed to his success in qualifying in Las Vegas. The Frenchman defied expectations and will start in 4th place for the race.
The expectations at Alpine, before the start of the weekend, were particularly low. The only two tracks where the blue and pink cars were eliminated in Q1 were Azerbaijan and Monza. Two circuits where it is well known that having a competitive top speed is crucial to perform well. With a Renault engine lagging behind its competitors, the nearly 2km straight line in Las Vegas offered a guarantee of a dull weekend. The opposite is what happened during the qualifying session.
Yes, indeed, Esteban Ocon was eliminated in 17th position, it turned out that it was not due to a poor pace of his car but rather due to a disastrous preparation of his laps. The Frenchman was hindered twice by traffic and even had to go wheel-to-wheel with Max Verstappen’s car. On the other side of the Alpine garage, the situation was much more peaceful. Pierre Gasly impressed right from Q1 by setting the 6th fastest lap. Unlike Hülkenberg, who had a good Q1 but was then eliminated in 13th position, Gasly managed to maintain the same level of performance throughout the entire qualifying session.
Without warning, it is finally in 5th position that the Frenchman finished this Saturday (European). A fifth position that transforms into fourth following the penalty on Carlos Sainz’s grid for a gearbox change.
« There is no explanation. Honestly, it came out of nowhere. We thought it would be the most challenging circuit of the season. We tried a lot of settings during the practice sessions and the car performed well. I did some excellent laps. We thought it would be difficult to make it to Q2 and in the end, we will start on the second row. »
Pierre Gasly proved it in Brazil by climbing from 11th position (during the second start) to 7th position. The A523 is traditionally more comfortable in long stints than in qualifying. Currently in a battle with Lance Stroll for the 10th position in the driver’s championship, the Alpine driver can create a gap with the Canadian in Las Vegas. This is the first time with Alpine that Gasly will start on the second row of the grid. A 5-place penalty in Spain had deprived him of such an achievement earlier in the season.
