Pierre Gasly: ​​“A good basic reference”

Third time this Thursday in Barcelona for his last day behind the wheel of the Toro Rosso STR13 – Honda, Pierre Gasly was certainly able to count on a car displaying satisfactory performance, but also renewed reliability, particularly on the engine side.

According to the Frenchman, the Faenza team really started to pick up the pace today. “We focused on performance for this last day and we saw great potential, as we finished with the third fastest time of the day. It's positive. We also did a race simulation, which was good for getting to know the car on gasoline. »

Pierre Gasly, however, remains cautious about Toro Rosso's position in the hierarchy. The Super Formula vice-champion reminds that only the Melbourne track will give a real verdict.

“It’s the last days and everyone is starting to reveal themselves a little bit by trying the qualifying modes. We tried the hyper-soft tires this morning, and we have a little more precise idea. We will see on Saturday in Melbourne.

We are quite happy with the potential of the car, we must continue to work to do even better. The top three teams are at a different level and there is no point in comparing yourself to them. We are fighting in the peloton and it will be close in Melbourne. »

The former GP2 Series champion will hand over his seat tomorrow to his teammate Brendon Hartley and launches a first analysis of his pre-season tests, which also allowed him to benefit from complete preparation, unlike his debut in F1 last year during the season in Malaysia.

“I'm happy with these four good days of testing. We drove a lot. We did our best to see the directions in which to go to develop the car. Now we'll have to analyze this before Melbourne, but I think we have some good ideas.

Since last week, we haven't had an engine problem. Despite the conditions which were not easy. The objective for Toro Rosso and Honda is to continue developing.

We have a good basic reference and we will have improvements during the season. Everyone on the team is working in the same direction and that's important. There is very good communication between everyone. The Japanese have a smile, it’s positive. »