Pierre Gasly has reflected on a dissapointing start to the F1 2025 season with Alpine. It’s the halfway point of the current campaign and the Enstone-based team are last in the championship with 19 points, 10 behind Haas.
Gasly shared his disappointment during a print media session at the British GP. However, he discussed that the team are focused on the 2026 F1 season.
Pierre Gasly on his struggles with the Alpine A525
Gasly is currently P13 in the F1 2025 championship, seperated from the top ten by only 4 points. When asked why the car shows weaknesses during the races and where he was struggling, the Frenchman highlighted sliding as the main problem. That in turn leads to high degradation, as seen in Austria for example.
“I think overall we slide a lot.
“Which on a new tyre I manage at times to get some decent performance out of it. But ultimately in race conditions when you have more degradation, hotter conditions etc., it’s not something which is competitive over a full race distance.”
Gasly was also asked about how much he is able to exceed the cars ability during qualifying sessions. Q3 appearances at the Red Bull Ring and Silverstone were completely unexpected because of the track layouts.
“I think we know at the moment when we go into qualifying it’s most likely that we get knocked out in Q1. Looking at last week [in Austria], that’s what we though would happen.
“Inside the car you just try to do the best job you can. Hoping that some other guys leave a little bit on the table and they try and get to the next stage, etc.
“I think in qualifying, generally, I’m feeling like I’m able to really extract a lot from the car. Obviously it’s difficult to drive and it’s not easy.
“I do feel that, obviously pushing to the extreme limit, unfortunately in Q3 last week, didn’t quite go exactly as I wanted in the last outing [he spun in the final corner].
“But that’s all we can do really because that’s what we have to fight.”
Looking towards the 2026 F1 season
The 2026 F1 season brings new regulations to the sport.
Gasly discussed how the teams focus has shifted towards developing next year like pretty much every other squad has in full already.
The overhaul is going to be huge and likely to create a bigger disparity in performance.
“We’re clearly not on the right end of the midfield. We’ll have to have a risky approach and try every single weekend.
“We also know why. Since the start of the year, we want to focus on 2026. Which I fully backed the team for doing it.
“It also means that we didn’t develop the car as much as some other teams might have done it.
“So put us a bit on the backfoot for this year with, hopefully, some better dividends for next year.”
Gasly on dealing with the disappointment in the car
Pierre Gasly has had some good results this season finishing P6 and picking up 8 points at the 2025 F1 British Grand Prix, showcasing his ability behind the wheel. Alpine did not have a P6 car at Silverstone to put it mildly.
Gasly was asked how he deals with the frustration of things that are outside of his control. Answering that it is “probably the hardest thing to deal with.”
“I think as an athlete, that’s probably the hardest to deal with.
“You put a lot of effort a lot of sweat, a lot of sacrifices.
“At the end of the day, when you see someone stepping on the podium, which doesn’t do the right job but gets the right car. Then when you’re finishing outside the points, feeling like you’ve done everything you could with the car you have, it’s not very satisfying going back on a Sunday night back home.”
“If it’s all to give us a chance to fight for real positions…i’ll do it anyday of the week.”
While the performance of the Alpine during the 2025 F1 season is disappointing, Gasly is positive that it will be worth it next season.
“I can see the positivity. I have a lot of expectations from the team for 2026.
“At the same time, from what I’m seeing, we’ve made some quite strong choices in terms of development, which we are paying a bit the price for this season.
“But hopefully, if it’s all to give us a chance to fight for real positions, podiums and running at the front next year, I’ll do it any day of the week.
“At the minute, we just need to focus on what’s right ahead of us.
“It’s part of my job just to overcome these difficulties.
“Even though it’s not an enjoyable position, I still can be sure that I give my best every single time I jump in the car.”
