Pierre Gasly says he can still get more out of his AlphaTauri car, despite having already topped the timingsheets on day one in Bahrain. Gasly's lap time of 1:33.902 on the Soft C5 compound tyre was unbeaten in the Bahrain heat while the Frenchman also clocked one of the fastest top speeds on track as one of only two cars to break through the 326 kilometres per hour barrier. It has been a fine pre-season so far for AlphaTauri which, besides a brief meeting with the tyre barrier in Barcelona, have appeared competitive amongst 2022's new-look grid. "It's good to be finishing the day in P1," said Gasly, reflecting on the first day of action. "We're always asked at tests how we're doing, and I think we've got to focus mainly on ourselves and our performance, not at the timing screens as, at the moment, it doesn't mean much until we get to qualifying next week. "Of course, it's always nice to be top of the rankings, but at the end of the day, I know we've got some stuff to work on, so we can get more out of the car."
Tsunoda to drive for AlphaTauri on Friday
It hasn't just been fast lap times that have made AlphaTauri appear so impressive, with the team also racking up the laps. Gasly completed 103 laps on day one in Bahrain, more than Haas and McLaren combined. "Overall, it's been a good day," he continued. "There are lots of positives with this car but, as a racing driver, we always focus on the negatives, so we'll be using the next two days of testing to really get to grips with this car and work to feel more comfortable in it. "I'll be working hard with the engineers tomorrow while Yuki [Tsunoda] takes over the driving of the car. "There are new things to discover with this car every time you go out on track, so we have to make the most of every session and learn as much as we can before the first race here next week."
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