Pierre Gasly finish FP2 in spectacular fashion with a P3 finish for Alpine, the result came after a difficult FP1 and left the Frenchman with high hopes for the F1 Imola GP weekend.
The weekend didn’t start in the most ideal fashion. In FP1, Pierre Gasly made contact with an animal on track which left his Alpine with damage and affected his running.
Luckily for Gasly the damage was easily fixed and he went into FP2 with hopes renewed. The session left his Alpine in P3, something that left the Frenchman beaming.
Positive signs
After a difficult weekend in Miami, the comfort Gasly felt in the machinery was welcome. He told F1 after the session, “It’s been a very, very good Friday. From the first lap, I could tell the car was in a much better place than in Miami.”
“I’m glad we managed to answer some of the question marks we had after the last race. Very pleased with the feeling in the car, the car reacts the way I want. I’m really able to be at the limit and push it to the maximum, so it’s a nice feeling.”
While it is just the second session of the weekend, Gasly had high praise for the A525 at the F1 Imola GP. He said, “The performance is there, obviously we know from Friday to Saturday the others usually keep a bit more in their pocket, but I think it’s quite fair to say it’s probably been the best Friday so far this year.”
High weekend hopes
Already in 2025, we’ve seen an incredibly tight and competitive fight for the final points positions from race to race. With the midfield cars battling it out down to the smallest margins.
Some weekends, teams get lucky and other weekends, they miss out. But the results have been in the details.
Still, The Frenchman looked to the weekend with high expectations, looking for a Q3 in qualifying. When he was asked if a top ten start was on the cards, he said, “I think for Q3, yes.”
“We know that the field can have all come slightly closer together on Saturday but, with what I’m feeling at the moment, if we manage to keep that momentum, find a little bit more pace for tomorrow, I think we should be in the mix for the top 10 which is exciting. I’m pleased and excited to see the rest of the weekend.”
Franco Colapinto steps into the seat beside Pierre Gasly, replacing Jack Doohan in an early season swap. While Gasly felt at home behind the wheel of the Alpine, Colapinto finished the session 13th, still getting up to speed with being back in F1.
There are high expectations surrounding both drivers this weekend, with team shifts happening throughout the team. A clean weekend is vital to maintain stability.
