Pierre Gasly: ​​“I thought I was going to fly away”

Le clan Toro Rosso did not go far from a serious accident between its two pilots Pierre Gasly et Brendon Hartley in Q1 this Saturday afternoon in Baku. Slowing down after suffering a puncture, Brendon Hartley hindered Pierre Gasly who was arriving at full speed just before turn 15.

A close call for the @ToroRosso drivers  #AzerbaijanGP  #F1 pic.twitter.com/DUO9gjCAbq

— Formula 1 (@F1) April 28, 2018

Le Français a évité de justesse l’ancien pilote Porsche, terminant dans l’échappatoire et ruinant sa tentative pour accéder à Q3. Furieux, l’ancien champion GP2 a clamé dans sa radio que cet incident était “unacceptable”, before returning to the episode having barely come down from its car.

“From the inside, I thought I was going to fly at him, admits Gasly at the microphone of Canal +. The speed difference was huge, he was right in the middle. When I turned, I thought I was going to fly away. I was improving. I didn't understand what he was doing. I didn't know if he was going left or right. »

“It’s probably the scariest moment of my career. » the Frenchman then admitted after his first hot reactions. It's clear that no one wants something like this to happen, but this is the second time we've gone into contact (after China), so we have to make sure we avoid these situations. »

Brendon Hartley apologized on the radio after this incident, which did not result in a sanction from the FIA. " I'm sorry, Hartley admitted. I tried to get out of the way, but it was too late, and I chose the wrong direction. »