Gasly refuses to rule out podium – 'Miracles do happen'

Pierre Gasly has refused to rule out Alpine finishing on the podium this season, with the Frenchman having stressed ahead of this weekend's Australian Grand Prix that "miracles do happen".

Alpine has suffered a disastrous start to the 2024 F1 season, to the extent that they are currently the backmarkers on the grid. The Enstone-based outfit has taken a massive gamble this year by introducing a completely new concept, which has failed miserably so far.

One of the French side's biggest issues is that the A524 is very overweight, severely impacting Gasly's and Esteban Ocon's one-lap performance.

12 months ago, Albert Park was a good venue performance wise for Alpine, with their race having unfortunately ended in dramatic circumstances – Gasly and Ocon crashed into each other. To add to the team's current misery, Gasly does not believe they can replicate their pace from last season.

"I don't think so," Gasly admitted to select media including RacingNews365. "So far, on two different tracks, the issue has been very, very similar.

"Obviously, it can vary within a couple percent, but based on the gap we were missing in the lap time or missing at the moment, we don't expect it's going to change massively the position we are in. But I think we've got some tests, some test plan, trying to understand the package."

Gasly continued: "But the absolute performance, we don't expect it to be very different because the car is the same as the first two races."

F1 sometimes 'unpredictable'

Whilst Alpine find themselves in their worst position performance-wise since joining F1, Gasly is confident that big results are possible.

With 2024 consisting of a record-breaking 24 races and six sprints, the 28-year-old recognises that there will be the occasional chance of a special result. Gasly has past experience of delivering exceptional results for midfield teams, with his maiden F1 win at the 2019 Italian Grand Prix for AlphaTauri being an example of that.

Based on what he has achieved previously, Gasly knows that Alpine cannot rule out claiming a podium this season.

"We will have our chances whether it is the top 10, top five or podium," believes Gasly. "I don't know what it will be, but one thing's for sure is that I'll fight every single time trying to get the best out of every single opportunity.

"We've seen it in the past, I've made it happen a couple of times. Miracles do happen sometimes in Formula 1, that's why we love the sport and sometimes it's unpredictable.

"In this type of moment I've always showed up and I'll keep trying as hard as I can and even on the season which might be tough."