Alpine hunting for points in Florida
Pierre Gasly has scored 54 of Alpine’s last 55 points and in Miami he hopes to pick up where he left off in Japan when he managed to keep Max Verstappen’s Red Bull behind him.
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The French driver took advantage of the unexpected break to spend time with his loved ones and to closely follow Paris Saint-Germain, his favorite team, especially in the Champions League. “I’m very excited to go racing again – said Gasly – it feels like a long time since Japan and now I’m ready to get back in the car, compete and, hopefully, pick up where we left off in Suzuka in terms of competitiveness. It was quite refreshing to spend some time in one place without the stress of travelling so much. Sometimes I was with family and friends, which was great because we often have little time for these things during a normal season. I even had the chance to go and watch some football, a passion of mine, with a trip to Paris to see the Champions League and a visit to Liverpool to see Anfield for the first time. Now my focus is back on racing and doing the best possible job in Miami. It will be really interesting to see what everyone brings in terms of updates. We, of course, want to pick up where we left off in Japan and that means being in contention for Q3 and for points. I know the team at Enstone has worked very hard to bring performance to the car and I can’t wait to get back in the A526 this weekend. As it’s a sprint race, it’s crucial to make the most of the first free practice session and then execute every subsequent session perfectly. Ultimately, we want points and that’s our goal.”
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Franco Colapinto is pumped after the crowd bath experienced at the Road Show in Buenos Aires: “After the break following Suzuka, it’s really good to prepare for another race week, especially in a unique place like Miami. As a team, we did valuable work in the simulator during the break, we had a very productive filming day at Silverstone with the A526 and, of course, the extraordinary Road Show in Buenos Aires. I still can’t believe how special it was to drive a Formula 1 car at home. The fans were fantastic and doing it for them was beautiful. But now, my full attention is on Miami and the Sprint weekend ahead. On Friday we will have a longer FP1 which will be very useful to understand our car ahead of a very intense weekend. I have never raced in Miami, so this session is very important for me to learn the circuit before entering the Sprint qualifying in the afternoon and the rest of the weekend. I’m excited for the challenge and to go racing again. Our goal, as always, is to do the best possible job and resume the season with another points finish.”
