One F1 driver insists he’s been an ‘animal’ behind the wheel this season despite the gap to his teammate.
After the most recent race in Australia, there are five drivers who lead their teammates three-nil in the qualifying head-to-heads.
And one of the individuals on the wrong side of that deficit has defended his efforts, via Motosport.com.
Reigning world champion Max Verstappen has a 100% record against Sergio Perez, having taken every available pole position so far while the Mexican has failed to make the front row.
At Mercedes, George Russell has sprung a surprise by out-qualifying Lewis Hamilton at every race, though he has publicly insisted that the seven-time world champion’s focus hasn’t wavered as he prepares to move to Ferrari.
Elsewhere, Yuki Tsunoda’s dominance over Daniel Ricciardo at RB has led to speculation over the Australian’s future at the team.
Valtteri Bottas has also asserted himself in the one-lap battle with Zhou Guanyu at Sauber.
And finally at Alpine, Esteban Ocon is currently getting the better of Pierre Gasly in an all-French duel.
Pierre Gasly says he’s driving like an ‘animal’ this year
Gasly insists he remains as motivated as ever despite Alpine’s woes this season.
Bruno Famin’s team have yet to score a single point, and the two drivers have suffered five Q1 eliminations from a possible six.
Ocon ended that run in Australia, but even then he only managed to take 15th on the grid.
Gasly admits that it’s difficult to feel satisfied when even ‘amazing’ laps lead to underwhelming results, but called for patience as the team tries to mount a recovery.
“Once I’m in the car, I’m like an animal,” he said. “I want to do the best I can with the package that I have in my hands.
“But even when we do an amazing lap and we are in P14 or do a really good race and you’re P13, it’s not the same really satisfaction as if you do a really good race and finish either on the top step or P5 with the package you have.
“So as [long] as we learn and we move forward, that’s the most important thing.
“I know the team is working really hard, and I can see some of the directions they’re taking to improve the package we’ve got, and I know we’ll get better. But it’s just got to take time.”
Gasly’s comments echo earlier remarks from Ocon, who says he ‘hates’ performing at an elite level only to come away empty-handed.
How many podiums does Gasly have in his career?
In addition to his extraordinary victory at the 2020 Italian Grand Prix, Gasly has finished on the podium at three other races.
The first of those came in Brazil in 2019, the same year Red Bull demoted him back to junior team Toro Rosso.
He held off Lewis Hamilton, the world champion that year, in a dramatic sprint to the finish line.
Two years later in Azerbaijan, Gasly capitalised on a puncture for Verstappen and an error from Hamilton to steal third for AlphaTauri.
And then last year at the Dutch Grand Prix, he took his first podium for Alpine in a wet race.
Unfortunately for the 28-year-old, there looks to be very little chance of adding to that tally in the near future.
Alpine may have failed to meet Gasly’s expectations, having spoken bullishly of a 100-race project that would have them competing for regular top-three finishes in 2024.
Gasly says he wants to drive for a works’ team next year as he approaches the end of his contract.
However, one journalist says ‘nobody’ is betting on Alpine ahead of the 2026 regulation changes, which could be another important factor in his decision.
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