Difficult first day for Gasly should not spoil the fun: 'Am excited'

Pierre Gasly starts this season with a new team, Alpine. Having driven for AlphaTauri in recent years, he thus swapped the team for Alpine. On Thursday, he got to make his first appearance as an F1 driver for the French team, joining as a replacement for Fernando Alonso, who moved to Aston Martin's garage.

After a long winter break, during which the French driver spent time with his family to recharge his batteries, it was time to return to the track. Gasly is happy to be back behind the wheel: "I am excited, it's a brand new challenge and project." Still, it was not a hugely successful first day for Alpine. Esteban Ocon and Gasly both finished outside the top ten.

Gasly is especially happy with the way the car feels during the test drive. The brand-new Alpine driver felt comfortable and was able to note the car's strengths and weaknesses: "I could spot strengths and weaknesses and the direction I want to take in terms of car balance." According to him, the test drive was extremely productive and he "can't wait" to get behind the wheel again.

Alpine's first day of testing was not very productive. The team achieved a total of 113 laps. Only Haas, Aston Martin and McLaren drove fewer laps. Alpine did not rank high in the timesheets either. Otmar Szafnauer previously expressed his intention to attack the top three. So whether that will happen remains to be seen.