Gasly: ​​“Maybe even tighter than last year” in the peloton in Melbourne

As curious as it may seem, Pierre Gasly (Alpha Tauri, ex-Toro Rosso) is entering his third participation in the Australian Grand Prix without having ever finished in the top 10 in the Antipodes. The Frenchman, 11th in 2019, hopes to do better in Melbourne and is counting on good winter testing to boost his morale.

Time for our Australian Grand Prixview!

This year, we challenged Pierre and Daniil with different scenarios at every Grand Prix to see how they would have dealt with them. Check it out! #F1 #AusGP pic.twitter.com/xVjWevhS5z

— Team AlphaTauri (@AlphaTauriF1) March 10, 2020

“Even though we had two fewer days of testing, I think overall we are well prepared for the first two races. We were able to get a good understanding of the AT01, with almost no interruption in driving, except for one morning. Reliability has been very satisfactory and performance appears to be within an appropriate window. »

The 2 GP2016 Series champion knows he remains “still a lot of work to achieve the objectives set this winter”, but he feels “very optimistic”. The Albert Park track (5,3 km), located in the heart of the megacity of Melbourne, will offer a very different challenge from Barcelona (Spain). 

“It’s a very different circuit (from Montmelo), very bumpy and with a low level of grip. We could see a different hierarchy than what was established during the Barcelona tests, warns the Habs.

What is certain is that it will once again be very close in the middle of the pack, perhaps even tighter than last year, he warns. This is the first time this year that everyone will ride without reservations. The mix of corner types and the low grip will have nothing to do with Barcelona, ​​but it's up to us to adapt to it. 

I'm really missing the Grand Prix, I've missed it these last three months. I hope we run as many times as possible given the coronavirus situation. »