Alpine driver Pierre Gasly finished the Formula 1 Chinese GP in sixth position, celebrating a good team result and the presence of both cars in the points.
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“It’s a great result for the team today and a solid weekend to put both cars in the points. Of course, I’m happy with the result, although deep down, the competitor in me is a bit upset about not getting fifth place, which I believe was possible in the end,” Gasly stated.
The French driver highlighted the comfort and pace of the car during the race in Shanghai: “Today I felt very comfortable in the car and the pace was there. We managed to keep up with the front group in the first part of the race. With these new cars, we knew it wasn’t a question of if there would be a safety car, but when. That ended up happening and bunched up the whole field.”
Gasly explained the loss of positions after the restart: “At the restart, for some reason, I didn’t have power or ‘boost’, and Ollie (Oliver Bearman from Haas) passed me. With all the battles with Max (Verstappen from Red Bull Racing) and other cars around me, I ended up losing ground to Ollie and was left with a big gap to close. I pushed as if every lap was a qualifying session, which was fun, and I managed to catch him, but I couldn’t get close enough to attempt the overtake,” he added.
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He concluded with optimism about the next challenges: “It’s a fantastic result and there are still many things to adjust. I hope we can take the pace we showed this weekend into the next races,” the French driver concluded.
Gasly’s performance reinforced Alpine’s increased competitiveness and shows that the team continues to adjust details to stay close to the front group.
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