Despite Dropping 6 Places From Pole at the Italian GP, Pierre Gasly Spots a Silver Lining for Upcoming Races
· Yahoo Sports
Alpine Formula One driver Pierre Gasly has opened up about his seventh-place finish at the Italian Grand Prix, which was in stark contrast to his qualifying result the previous day, when he secured pole position. Despite losing several positions, Gasly remained positive, suggesting that his team has been working in the right direction to get the A526 F1 car performing closer to the level of the top teams.
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Gasly stunned the F1 community by setting the fastest time in Q3 during qualifying for the Italian GP at Monza. The result raised hopes for both the Frenchman and his team, which had not won a race since 2021. Notably, Gasly’s only previous F1 victory came at the 2020 Italian GP, adding to speculation that he could repeat the feat five years later.
However, Gasly knew his car lacked the race pace needed to compete with the fastest cars on the grid, including those from Mercedes, McLaren, Ferrari, and Red Bull. Asked by the media about his pole position on Saturday and P7 finish on Sunday, Gasly said:
“Story of my life. It’s been a lot going on. For sure the last 24 hours have been extremely fun and extremely enjoyable with all the energy, the motivation in the garage. The reaction of the whole team, I’m sure it’s going to bring a huge boost to all of us.
May 21, 2026; Montreal, Quebec, CANADA; Alpine driver Pierre Gasly (10) looks on during a press conference at Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve. Mandatory Credit: David Kirouac-Imagn Images“The gap with the cars in front was smaller than the gap with the car behind. That’s what we’ve got to build on and hopefully we can repeat this type of performance more often.”
When asked how he felt about the car after securing pole position, Gasly admitted that he already knew it did not have the pace to challenge for a podium finish. He said:
“I mean, the part of me that is realistic is very satisfied. Obviously starting on pole you must have a side of you which thinks, ‘OK, what can happen over 54 laps,’ this and that, but I’ve got to be honest, before the race we knew that the pace in the race would be extremely difficult to stay up there and fight with the top guys.
“I’m very happy with the two starts. We took two great starts, managed to keep the lead on the first one, great on the second. Battled slightly, stayed in the right train for the first ten laps, which was really good.
“Battled with Lando [Norris], who won the last two races, so from where we come from it’s very positive. Finished three seconds behind Lewis, who’s been fighting for podiums this year. I’m not going to be disappointed with that.
“Obviously the end result is P7 and you’ll wish you can get slightly more out of it, but I think overall we’ve just got to take all the positives from the weekend, because there were many, and try to build from that.”
ZANDVOORT, NETHERLANDS – AUGUST 23: Pierre Gasly of France driving the (10) Alpine F1 A526 Mercedes on track during the F1 Grand Prix of Netherlands at Circuit Zandvoort on August 23, 2026 in Zandvoort, Netherlands. (Photo by Simon Galloway/LAT Images)Gasly added that Alpine will continue to build from this point to try and improve race pace. He said:
“We still have stuff to learn and do better, but overall I think we’re very well aware and heading in the right direction. Even for the team, I think the last pole was 2009. I imagine some guys have been working there for years and never experienced it.
“I’m sure going back in Enstone is going to be quite special. Again, that should be the target, try to repeat it and get a bit better on Sunday and try to be in that mix in front of us.”