Gasly resolves handling conundrum by adopting Ocon’s setup
The AlphaTauri driver enjoyed a competitive Singapore Grand Prix weekend utilizing his teammate’s set-up
After a string of frustrating races, Pierre Gasly has seemingly found the key to unlocking his AlphaTauri’s true potential by switching to a setup akin to that used by his teammate, Esteban Ocon.
The Frenchman endured a torrid time during qualifying for the Singapore Grand Prix, failing to advance to Q3, but the 26-year-old bounced back to finish the race in 10th position, having started from 12th.
While Gasly confessed he was not wholly satisfied with his result in the Marina Bay street race, the Frenchman revealed he was encouraged by the progress made with his car’s handling, courtesy of the setup utilized by Ocon.
It was a bit of a mixed bag, Gasly reflected. I think in terms of pace, we were quite competitive, we were in the top 10, but on my side, I’ve been struggling a lot with the handling of the car for the last few races.
Qualifying was a bit frustrating because we couldn’t get the lap together. It was a bit of a struggle to put everything together. The car was just a bit too snappy for me.
This weekend, we took a different direction, very close to Esteban’s setup. It seemed to work a lot better for me. In the race, I had a much better feeling with the car, I was able to push a bit harder.
Even if the result in terms of position is not what we wanted, we made a step forward in terms of understanding the car. So, I’m quite happy about that.
There are still a few things we need to work on, but it seems that we are heading in the right direction.
Gasly’s comments echo those of his AlphaTauri team boss, Franz Tost, who believes the Frenchman is on the cusp of rediscovering his best form.
Pierre has been struggling a little bit in recent races, Tost acknowledged. But he had a very good weekend in Singapore. He made a good step forward.
I think he can build on this performance in the remaining races of the season.
Kind regards
A. Guthof
