Photo credit: BWT Alpine F1 Team
After a tumultuous Friday that saw the announcement of a full overhaul of team management, Alpine had one of their best days of 2023 as Pierre Gasly and Esteban Ocon made it out of a wet-to-dry sprint qualifying in sixth and ninth, and then in the delayed, wetter-to-dry sprint race Gasly moved up to third for his best finish in any race since 2021, while Ocon held position for a ninth place finish, just outside of the sprint points.
Gasly was among most of the lead group that switched to intermediate tyres at the start of green flag racing, moved up to third by the time the safety car came out on lap four, and held off a charge by Lewis Hamilton in the final couple laps. The Frenchman jumped the two Ferraris and Norris after everyone switched to the green tyre.
“I must say I gave it everything. I could see him coming back, getting closer and I was just trying to focus on my driving, making clean laps, one after the other. It wasn’t easy, the tyres were degrading, and I just gave it all and it paid off.”
Given the inner turmoil—amidst an already subpar season for Alpine—the result was just the confidence boost needed for Team Enstone. Gasly also took a moment to remember his friend Anthoine Hubert and dedicate this great finish to him.
“We finished that Sprint race in the top three. It was difficult conditions, and not easy to keep it to the end. I’m really, really pleased for the guys, for the mood inside the garage. And yeah, everyone who’s been working since the start of the year. I think personally, obviously to do this in Spa, it’s been a tough season, really unlucky so far and to kind of have these turning points here in Spa with obviously the history and the incidents that happened in the past year for me, it’s definitely meaningful.”
The team will have a harder climb on Sunday, with Gasly starting 14th and Ocon starting 16th, but with more time to work—and a decent chance of more rain, which has played into Alpine’s favor this season—they will be hoping to build on Saturday’s success.
