Gasly surprised: 'Hopefully they didn't sell too many tickets there'

After the podium at Zandvoort, the tough times seemed to slow down for Alpine. With the emphasis on 'seemed'. A week later, in Monza, the French team had a particularly tough time at the Italian Grand Prix: Esteban Ocon crashed out, and Pierre Gasly finished fifteenth. Can they perform better at Singapore on a circuit that leans more towards Zandvoort than Monza?

Gasly is cautiously hopeful of a good weekend but: "Yeah, we expect it to be slightly better. Obviously, it brings very different conditions, very different track characteristics, and more corners. We know why we struggled in Monza and some of the weaknesses. I think probably on paper, it's a bit closer to a track like Zandvoort, where we showed slightly more competitiveness, but it's not gonna be night and day. But definitely, we prepared ourselves in the best way possible, and I hope we win the mix for the points," said the Frenchman.

The Grand Prix in Singapore is usually long, and in the past, it has been difficult to overtake. For this season, the track has been changed, so there may be extra overtaking opportunities. In addition, the race should be shorter, now that there are more straights than before. A lap is expected to be finished about nine seconds faster.

"Usually, the more corners, the better it is for us. I wasn't so keen. I've always loved Singapore for how twisty and technical it is, in a way. So, yeah, it's just two chicanes which have been taken away, and now one grandstand which is now facing the wrong way. Hopefully, they didn't sell too many tickets there! But apart from that, it's still gonna be very, very cool."