Pierre Gasly put on a strong performance in the F1 2026 Chinese GP Qualifying. The Frenchman secured a P7 and outperformed both Red Bull drivers, as well as his teammate Franco Colapinto.
After failing to secure points during the Sprint Race, Gasly remains optimistic about the Grand Prix. With a solid starting position and a narrow gap to the cars ahead, Alpine will hope to be fighting for points once again. The Frenchman explained that the team has worked hard to improve the car.
“After yesterday, qualified seventh and qualified again seventh today, but with a small gap to the cars ahead. I think that’s what pleases me the most because we’ve improved the car in a good way, we’ve made a couple of changes as well after the front for the race. We’ve put a bit more front into the car and hopefully that can help us as well tomorrow.”
Gasly hoping to join the fight at the 2026 Chinese GP
During the 2026 Chinese GP Qualifying, Pierre Gasly’s performance provided him with a real opportunity to contend in the top ten. The Alpine team, working hard to improve the car, combined with the Frenchman’s strong laps, secured him a P7.
“The whole quali was very well executed, I felt good, I did some strong laps out there so it’s definitely encouraging for the whole team. It’s very close behind us, and with the gaps in front of us, and today we were three tenths to McLaren so they are not miles ahead. We’ve got to focus on our thing, and keep bringing performance, and hopefully we can slowly join the fight.”
When asked if he felt he would make Q3 in Melbourne after the learnings taken and speed shown this weekend, he is confident they would do it. He is hoping the race pace will be strong enough to stay in the top 10 at the F1 Chinese GP.
“If we come back to Melbourne right now I would in Q3, it’ll probably be the best we made, further up the road in the race. It was the first race with this new car, there was a lot to process, and unfortunately, it hasn’t been the easiest sessions throughout the weekend, so we slightly underperformed there. We’ve got some limitations with the car, which we’re working on, and I feel this weekend we’ll definitely be making a step forward with small tweaks we’ve done on the car.
“But yeah, we’ll see. We have some performance, all the performance we find in a few areas with the current package we’ve got. Quali is one lap, now we need to confirm in the race a little bit. This morning, it wasn’t good enough, hopefully tomorrow we can hold on to it.”
Optimise battery usage consistently during F1 Qualifying
Something many of the drivers appeared to struggle with is understanding how to optimise battery usage during Qualifying. Under the new regulations, the engines are 50% electric, meaning drivers must continuously adapt on each lap. Speaking about optimising battery usage over a qualifying lap, Pierre Gasly insists consistency is the struggle.
“I think quali today, it’s more the consistency. You can really nail it in a lap and then the next lap you go a tiny bit faster, your throttle application is a bit sharper in some corners, and then coming to the key area of the track where you need the full pack, maybe you’re five percent lower from the exit of the last corner, where it can be costly.
“We’re always trying to adjust and finding the right balance, and I think it’s the same challenge for everyone. Compared to the past where it was really easy to nail it, now it’s harder. Probably the target is to be 99% of the time there because, at the moment, with all the info we have and the control we have, we can’t just nail it every single lap.”
Alpine back in the battle at F1 2026 Chinese GP
At the first race weekend in Melbourne, Alpine appeared to be a step behind as Gasly qualified P14 and Colapinto P16. During the race, Pierre Gasly battled through the field and scored one point. This time, the Alpine car seems quicker. When asked if this weekend is aligning more with their target expectations, Gasly stated:
“Not going to lie, a bit better. Looking at the Red Bull, I’m a bit confused with their pace, because when you see them in the second row in Melbourne, they were basically taking it to the McLaren. We don’t think we’re quite there yet, so I think they just seem to have dropped a tiny bit this weekend. We made a step forward. Generally, I’m pretty pleased with what I’ve seen this weekend, that we have the potential to be in that pack. Once again, things are going to move very quickly this season, and it’s important for us to move faster as well, faster than the others, make sure we stay in the right train for the rest of the year.”
As it has been a while since Alpine has looked quick, Gasly was asked about being back in the battle.
“I must say it’s definitely, I’m feeling more alive again, so that’s definitely exciting. Also the fact that I’m seeing good cooperation from the team, and understanding what we’re doing, things are heading the right away. But again, there is a lot of work out of ahead of us.”
A moment of relief after Alpine’s struggles
Pierre Gasly was asked if the Qualifying result feels like a moment of relief after the suffering Alpine had over the last season. Over the entire 2025 F1 season, the French team managed only 22 points.
“Yeah, I mean, seventh yesterday in Q3, I was fighting for points in Melbourne. Again this morning, unfortunately, it didn’t really go our way, but tomorrow, I should be in the mix for the top 10. It’s definitely a much nicer place to be in than we were last year.”
Given that there are still parts to be addressed, the Frenchman was asked whether he expected to strengthen his position and be at the top of the midfield at the 2026 F1 Chinese GP.
“Again, it’s gonna be like a development race, so I’m pretty excited to see what’s coming on the cards. It’s going to take a few weeks, but as you said, I think the target is just to hopefully create a bit of a gap with the guys behind and knock at the heels of the guys in front and hopefully return the battle. Whether it will be achievable, I don’t know, but all I know is the guys are working really hard and there is more coming. Just this in itself is enough to bring some excitement to this.”
