After a relatively disappointing start to the season at the Australian Grand Prix, Alpine F1 Team is already approaching the second round of the championship with caution but also the desire to do well.
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Despite a point scored in Melbourne, Pierre Gasly believes that the team is still far from fully exploiting the potential of its car.
The Frenchman gave a clear-headed initial assessment before the Chinese Grand Prix weekend, held on the Shanghai International Circuit.
Much progress still possible
“There were many lessons learned from Melbourne, Gasly says. The main one is that we are still quite far from being at the maximum potential of the package we have in our hands. There are many things to improve: the car, understanding the car, the setup, the engine, maximizing energy, qualifying and the race.”
Gasly even believes that the French team did not fully exploit what it is capable of during the first race: “Objectively, we feel that we slightly underperformed in Melbourne and I expect to be in a better position here in China. We already have some elements that should bring more performance to the car. ”
Melbourne less favorable than Bahrain
During winter testing in Bahrain, the car seemed more competitive. But Gasly insists on the fact that comparisons remain tricky: “It was better, but I don’t think it’s due to a single thing. Everyone is developing their car. In Melbourne, we have already seen improvements in some teams.”
The Australian track and the specific conditions did not necessarily play in Alpine’s favor: “These conditions and this circuit played less in our favor. But overall, we simply didn’t do a perfect job to maximize our package.”
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Technical and setup issues
The Australian weekend was also disrupted by some technical difficulties: “In free practice, we had some problems with the engine. We worked a lot on energy and we probably missed certain factors on the tires or on the setup.”
Gasly nevertheless remains optimistic for the future: “We know what we are going to improve and I am confident that we will be in a better position here. We were better on Sunday than on Saturday, so we just need a bit of adjustment.”
After a complicated 2025 season, the French driver describes a team focused and aware of the work to be accomplished: “The atmosphere is what we need to have. We all need to work harder and better. We know it wasn’t enough, but there is no alarm or need to dramatize. We are very aware and objective.”
The challenge of the Sprint weekend
The Chinese weekend will also offer a Sprint format, which considerably reduces preparation time. A situation that does not make the task easier for a team still in the learning phase.
“Obviously no, we won’t be fully optimized for the Sprint yet, he concludes. There will probably be even more differences on the grid. But it’s the same challenge for everyone.”
For Alpine, this second Grand Prix of the season will therefore be a first opportunity to check if the lessons learned from Melbourne can quickly translate into a performance gain on track.
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