He eventually finished ninth, but Pierre Gasly would almost not have started at all at Spa-Franchorchamps, according to Auto Motor und Sport.

Teammate Yuki Tsunoda would start from the pits anyway due to an engine change, but it was not planned that Pierre Gasly would also start from the pitlane. Just before the start, his car was rolled into the garage and although the driver obviously remained ready to drive the car to the end of the pit lane for a pit start, there was little hope that this would happen. An electronic problem prevented the car from starting. The AlphaTauri mechanics did their best to fix the problem and get the car started, but let their driver know that the chances of him being able to race were very small.

90 seconds of grace for Gasly

But 90 seconds before the start, the car did start and Gasly could line up at the red light at the end of the pit lane to start his own race. The safety car helped the French driver connect with the field and from there he drove his own race. According to Gasly, AlphaTauri chose an aggressive strategy that resulted in a points finish.

Although he is happy with the points in a race he almost didn't start, he does wonder how different it would have been if he had been able to start from the grid: "With this result you obviously wonder what would have been possible if I had started from eighth on the grid."