It was a Saturday of contrasts for the Alpine Formula 1 team at Interlagos. Pierre Gasly delivered one of his strongest weekends of the season so far, securing a valuable point in the Sprint Race and later reaching Q3 in qualifying. Meanwhile, teammate Franco Colapinto endured a difficult session after a crash in the Sprint. With the Brazilian Grand Prix set for 18:00 Italian time, Alpine will look to turn the mixed results into a positive outcome in Sunday’s race.
Pierre Gasly pleased with strong pace and first Q3 since Silverstone
“It was really a good day,” said Pierre Gasly. “First, with our first point since Spa this morning in the Sprint, and then our first Q3 since Silverstone this afternoon in qualifying. It’s very encouraging to see that we have the potential to be competitive, and we’ll try to keep building on that tomorrow.”
The French driver explained that his A524 felt strong during the Sprint: “I felt I had a car I could really fight with. I knew the point was within our reach, and we had to push hard until the end. I went for the move on Lance [Stroll] into Turn 1 — it was a risk, but it paid off.”
Gasly emphasized the importance of the result for the team’s morale: “It’s only one point, but it really lifts everyone’s spirits. We’ve been through a difficult period, and we have some ideas about why we were competitive here, but we still need to analyze further. In qualifying, we were just a few hundredths away from the top five. My final lap wasn’t perfect, but starting in the top ten gives us a good opportunity to fight for more points tomorrow.”
Franco Colapinto grateful to team after challenging day
Franco Colapinto expressed his gratitude to the team for repairing his car in time for qualifying after his crash in the Sprint. “First of all, I want to sincerely thank the team for repairing the car in time for qualifying. It was an incredible effort and I’m extremely grateful,” he said.
The Argentine rookie reflected on his Sprint incident: “We were in a good position in those tricky conditions, but one of the cars ahead went through a puddle, which surprised several drivers and caused a chain reaction. I lost control as soon as I hit the painted line. It’s a pity, because we were having some good battles and seemed quite competitive.”
Franco Colapinto also noted that the car’s handling felt very different compared to earlier in the weekend: “The car felt completely different than it did at the start of the weekend, and I wasn’t as comfortable. The performance wasn’t at the same level as in previous sessions. Credit to Pierre — he’s been excellent this weekend. His point in the Sprint and the Q3 result are a well-deserved reward for the team’s relentless work. The car clearly has potential here; we just need to understand why I wasn’t able to find the same confidence.”
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