Pierre Gasly says Scuderia AlphaTauri had a sudden electrical problem when trying to start the car before the race and was on the verge of a rear end before the start of the Formula 1 Belgian Grand Prix.
Pierre Gasly was scheduled to start the race from 8th on the grid, but when the formation lap began, Gasly was not there. Drama unfolded in the Scuderia AlphaTauri garage as the crew frantically tried to start the AlphaTauri AT03.
Ultimately Pierre Gasly was able to start the race from the pitlane and, after a successful two-stop strategy, finished ninth, but admitted that the pre-race confusion had left him “furious”.
“I’m very happy with the race we ran,” Gasly told Sky Sports F1.
“I was furious at the start of the race because we were lined up in the pits.”
“I don’t know exactly what happened, but there was an electrical problem and the car wouldn’t switch on.
“We had to push the car back into the garage, and then they told me that they might not be able to participate in the race, and 90 seconds before the start of the race the car came alive again.”
Pierre Gasly climbed up to 11th on his first pit stop before finishing in the top 10 after a final switch from hard to medium tyres.
“I’m surprised to be back in the top ten, especially after the last few races,” commented Pierre Gasly.
“I’m very happy with the result. We definitely made the right decision today in terms of strategy, undercuts and being very aggressive.”
“I think Alex[Albon]helped a lot by blocking the other guys towards the end of the race, so we benefited from the fresh air and the right strategy when I was alone on track. I was able to make decisions and use the pace of the car to go in the right direction.”
Category: F1 / Pierre Guthrie / F1 Belgian Grand Prix / Alpha Tauri