From Jeddah to Miami
After closing the chapter on the last Saudi Arabian GP and the Middle Eastern races, teams and drivers are now ready to tackle the Miami Grand Prix, the first of three U.S. events in the championship. The common factor between the two aforementioned events, however, is the race on street circuits, where Pierre Gasly had particularly impressed in Jeddah.
Strengths to return to the top-10
After a great performance in Free Practice and qualifying within the top ten, the French Alpine driver’s race lasted less than a lap due to a collision with Red Bull’s Yuki Tsunoda, an incident that ended his hopes of adding more points after a difficult start to the season for both him and the team: “I can’t wait to get back to racing at the Miami GP this week,” said the 29-year-old, 11th in the overall standings tied with Hülkenberg and Bearman. “After retiring on the first lap following the incident with Yuki in Jeddah, I’m determined to make sure I have a good performance this weekend. Overall, the triple header has been challenging, but we’ve been able to show competitive pace, especially in Bahrain. Now that we’re heading to the United States, we need to build on these positives and aim to always earn a reward and chase some of our rivals. Miami will be the second Sprint weekend of the year, so we’ll start as usual with the Sprint Shootout on Friday afternoon. The entire circuit is one of the most beautiful of the year: driving around the Hard Rock Stadium and the paddock located on the NFL field is really amazing. The track is exciting, and the two long straights offer good overtaking opportunities. I’ve watched many great races at this circuit, and last year we were very close to the points in both races. This weekend will be very hot and humid, and our goal is to optimize the car for the heat conditions and make sure we’re in contention for points in both the Sprint and the Grand Prix.”
Points zone still out of reach for Gasly’s teammate
Gasly’s teammate, Jack Doohan, has not yet reached the points zone. The Australian is still seeking his first career top-10 finish after five races, with the upcoming weekend marking the second Sprint event of the year after Shanghai: “I’m excited to go to Miami this week,” he commented. “The triple header was at times difficult, but it allowed us to learn a lot and clear things up. We’ve definitely made progress compared to the start of the year, and we just need to continue down this path every time we go on track. It was nice to have a week to rest and reset. I spent some time working with the team at the factory and on the simulator to prepare for Miami. The track is particularly special because it’s in an NFL stadium, and the American fans always create a great atmosphere during race weekend. I’ve already experienced this energy, and I have a great memory from last year when I got a ride from Patrick Mahomes! Now, I’m definitely excited to experience this as a full-time driver and tackle the Sprint weekend, where it’s particularly important to be on top from the start. We’ll try to prepare as best we can to start both the Sprint Race and the Grand Prix in the best possible position to fight for points.”
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