Pierre Gasly has opened up about his difficult Formula 1 stint at Red Bull, admitting he was not “given the tools to perform” during his half-season with the team.
Before reaching Red Bull’s top F1 side, Gasly impressed in the junior ranks. He won the 2016 GP2 title and followed that with a runner-up finish in Super Formula.
That led to his F1 debut with Red Bull’s sister squad, then known as Toro Rosso, which positioned him to succeed Daniel Ricciardo when he left Red Bull in 2019.
“Right after Budapest, Daniel announced he was leaving,” Gasly recalled on Off The Grid.
“I remember arriving in Greece for my holiday, and it was like, ‘Whoa, Daniel is going.’
“Red Bull had Carlos Sainz as an option and they had me. It’s between Sainz and myself.
“The phone rang and Helmut [Marko] told me: ‘Okay, you’re a Red Bull Racing driver at the start of next year’ – this was six months into my first full season in F1.”
Gasly’s time at Red Bull, however, was short-lived as he struggled alongside Max Verstappen, a trend which has continued in the second seat until now.
“I’m not going to lie, it was sad,” Gasly said. “2019, my second year in Formula 1 – there was no support from anywhere, in a very big team which is very much supporting Max – for good reasons, because he’s put on the results.
“But I’m starting with a fresh engineer coming from Formula E who didn’t have experience in F1. So it was a strange dynamic. I wasn’t really given the tools to really perform.
“I tried to fight my own way because I wanted, and at the end of the day I’m there to, perform. They were not happy, but I’m not happy, too, because I could see I couldn’t show my potential.”
Gasly ‘optimistic’ about Alpine’s budding prospects
Gasly rebuilt his career at AlphaTauri (Toro Rosso), including a memorable maiden Grand Prix victory at Monza in 2020.
With no clear route back to Red Bull, he chose to move on to Alpine in 2023, where he has since achieved two podiums.
From 2026, the team will run Mercedes engines for the first time. Combined with new chassis and engine regulations, Gasly expects a fresh start.
“I’m very optimistic on the car we are putting together,” Gasly said. “Chassis side, engine-wise, I think everything is looking good. We are hitting all our targets, so very excited for ’26.”
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