Is Pierre Gasly on the bubble in Formula 1?
There is no doubt that Pierre deserves his place on the grid, however he could find himself with a lack of options when his time at Alpha Tauri and Redbull ends.
Who is Pierre Gasly?
Pierre was born in Rouen, Upper Normandy in France on the 7th of Feb 1996.
In Formula 1 he has completed ninety-one races with a best finish of first (2020 Italian GP). Gasly has spent his full F1 career under the Redbull banner with either Scuderia Toro Rosso (Alpha Tauri) or Redbull.
His debut was at the 2017 Malaysian GP, where he would go on to finish in 14th. He would complete five races in that season. (Toro Rosso would have no less than 4 drivers racing during 2017 (Daniil Kvyat, Brendon Hartley, Pierre Gasly, Carlos Sainz JR) Gasly was promoted to a full-time race seat for 2018, scoring twenty-nine points, beating his teammate Brendon Hartley, who managed four points.
REDBULL GIVES YOU …. A HEADACHE
Redbull promoted Pierre to the Redbull main team for 2019, after Daniel Ricciardo’s surprise decision to move to Renault (now Alpine). The promotion to Redbull was not a good fit for Pierre, who struggled with the RB15, he would be consistently off the pace of his more experienced teammate, Max Verstappen. Although there were glimmers of the Frenchman’s talent during his time at the Redbull, he was demoted back to Toro Rosso, with rookie Alex Albon heading in the opposite direction. The end of the 2019 season ended on a high with Gasly taking second at the Brazilian GP ahead of Lewis Hamilton.
With Toro Rosso now rebadged as Alpha Tauri, Pierre Gasly seems to have shaken off the disappointing Redbull stint and has rebuilt his Formula 1 reputation and career. All credit to the young driver, not many drivers could deal with the pressure and disappointment he endured during the 2019 season. The shortened 2020 season saw Gasly take seventy-five points, increasing to 110 in 2021, which included a podium finish at the Azerbaijan GP.
HOW TO SOLVE A PROBLEM LIKE PIERRE?
This is where the problems for Pierre begin to surface, there is no question that Pierre should be on the grid, there is also no question that he deserves a shot at the front of the grid. What are his options? Heading back to the main Redbull team seems to be a non-starter, after the team passed on Gasly to bring in Mexican Sergio Perez. With the other top teams, including Ferrari and Mercedes having secured drivers over multiple seasons, the options for a front running team are already low, if not already gone.
ALPINE
Alpine could be an option, however talented Australian driver Oscar Piastri looks to have first option on any free seat within the French works team. Fernando Alonso, has also been quick to remind the F1 media that he is looking to race for another 2/3 years. With the Spaniard’s season not starting as well as he hoped (more penalty points than World Championship points) I’m sure this is Fernando making sure he is willing to race if Alpine decide not to continue with the two-time champion.
ALFA ROMEO
Alfa Romeo, who are enjoying a great start to the 2022 season, have Guanyu Zhou and Valtteri Bottas. Ex Mercedes driver Bottas has a multi-year deal and Zhou bring with him millions of dollars in sponsorship. This shuts the door on Alfa as well.
Currently Aston Martin and Williams would more than likely be seen as a sideways/backwards step for Gasly.
MCLAREN
That leaves the papaya squad, The historic McLaren squad have Lando Norris signed up to a longer time deal and it seems to be a very secure relationship. The second McLaren seat less secure, Daniel Ricciardo’s less than steller performances at McLaren has raised speculation that he may not remain at McLaren, social media rumours are going as far as saying that a Gasly/Ricciardo swap is on the cards.
With no official chatter regarding this rumour it would seem that this is just social media chatter. With McLaren not known for mid season changes, at least in more recent times. Could McLaren decide to end the Ricciardo partnership and head for Gasly?
Would Pierre look at McLaren as a good move? It’s not as far fetched at it may seem and could be a good fit for both. But for this to happen a lot of things and decisions need to fall into place, Pierre could see himself on the outside looking in, another deserving driver, who missed out due to circumstances that were mostly out with his control.
I for one would love to see Pierre Gasly at McLaren, it would be intriguing to see the young Frenchman driving without the shackles of Redbull, there is no doubt that McLaren would be a more relaxed atmosphere.
Lets see where the pieces of the F1 jigsaw fall, one thing is for sure they will definitely not fall where we expect.