Pierre Gasly admits of being in an embarrassing situation where two more points on his license will lead to a F1 grand prix ban.
After collecting more points in F1 Mexico GP, AlphaTauri’s Gasly is certainly in the troubling situation where any further mishap will cost him a grand prix start whether in 2022 and or 2023. He has 10 against his name and two more will lead a race ban.
Should he get a penalty in Brazil, he will miss his final race with AlphaTauri, while if he gets one in Abu Dhabi or beyond, he will miss a grand prix for Alpine. The next eradication of points doesn’t happen until late April with four to five F1 races in between.
Gasly is certainly in an embarrassing situation which was visible when speaking to media in Brazil. He is in talking terms with the FIA to understand what can be done better, not just in his driving but also about drivers getting penalised for track limits with points.
“I’m not going to lie, it’s a very unpleasant situation and quite delicate,” said Gasly. “In some ways also a bit embarrassing to be standing in a position where I could be banned for a race after the season that I’ve done. I don’t really feel like I’ve been particularly dangerous over these last 12 months. And that will definitely be a harsh penalty.
“But there have been a lot of discussions with the FIA, trying to find a solution because personally, I want to do all the races. I want to finish the season in the best way I can with AlphaTauri. I want to do all the races in 2023 and get the maximum chances to perform for Alpine. And obviously, this is a lot at stake, because no one knows what’s going to happen in ’23. I could end up with an amazing car, fighting for the championship, for example.
“And I can’t take the risk to be banned for a race and lose all my hopes for the championship. So it’s a very tricky situation. I’ve been discussing quite a lot with the FIA to try to find solutions because the way the regulation is written at the moment, it’s quite strict on the drivers and [there are] quite harsh penalties, even though it’s not always then related to dangerous driving.
“And definitely the penalties has massive repercussions on the Team and Drivers’ Championships, so I do hope we’re going have again more conversation today, but I do hope we can find solution ahead of the weekend to avoid to end up in a silly situation where I’ll be banned for a race and that would be terrible for myself and definitely not the way that I’ve seen the sport growing up.
“And I don’t think that’s the correct approach. Because obviously I can’t really go into next year with only two points and that risk over my head. But at the same time, at the moment, there is no clear solution. So hopefully, there can be a good plan going forward for 2023,” summed up Gasly.
Here’s Pierre Gasly after Mexico
Here’s Nyck de Vries having seat fit with McLaren
Here’s details from FIA for F1 Brazilian GP