Pierre Gasly has named outgoing Ferrari driver Carlos Sainz as the name he would most like to see come in alongside him at Alpine from the 2025 Formula 1 season.
Sainz was known to be weighing up proposals from Sauber as it prepares to evolve into a works Audi team from the 2026 season and Williams to partner Alex Albon.
But while the Spaniard was touted to be closing in on a decision last month, Alpine entered the frame over the Spanish Grand Prix weekend and complicated matters.
The Enstone-based squad has sustained an uptick in fortunes over recent rounds to emerge as the most competitive option amongst the teams Sainz is considering.
Gasly, who penned a multi-term extension with Alpine, admits Sainz’s status as a three-time race winner makes him the standout candidate to replace Esteban Ocon.
Asked at Silverstone whether he was having an input on who will be his team-mate next season, Gasly responded: “Not really, it’s not up to me.
“I can obviously see until I’m discussing with Bruno [Famin] and with the whole management on trying to tell them what’s my personal opinion.
“I think it’s quite clear, Carlos is the most experienced and most valuable guy out there.
“I would love to have him next to me next year, I think he’ll bring definitely a lot to the team and we’ll be a great pairing.
“But we’ve got also some very good options – we’ve got Jack, we’ve got Mick who’s been in F1, and we just have different great options.”
Alpine has recovered from a tumultuous start to the campaign to score points in the past four rounds and rise from last in the Constructors’ Championship to eighth.
The Frenchman has commended the Anglo-French camp’s response to its arduous opening to the term and its approach to ensuring that it maximises opportunities.
Asked what has made the difference compared to the earlier races, Gasly said: I think the team is doing well. It’s really like sticking together since the start of the year.
“We’re all extremely disappointed with the sort of performance we got out of the car, but we just looked at ourselves [and] always tried to improve on all areas.
“The team did a fantastic job reducing the car weight at the start of the year, improving small bits and pieces there and really focusing on what we can do, be self-objective and work on every single part we can to improve the end result on a Sunday.
“I think we’ve been operating very well these last few weekends. Obviously the car is still where it is and we wish we could add more performance to fight the top eight, but at the minute we know what the target is and what we should focus on with the package we’ve got, and try to maximise the opportunities to grab a point or two here.”
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