Breaking news
Formula 1
Gasly boosted by "relief" of no Red Bull pressure - Horner
Pierre Gasly's return to his best in Formula 1 has been triggered by the "relief" of escaping the intense pressure that hurt him at Red Bull, reckons his former boss Christian Horner.
Jonathan Noble
Edited: Nov 20, 2019, 2:15 PM
Copy link
Share on Viber
The Frenchman drove brilliantly at the Brazilian Grand Prix to take the first podium finish of his F1 career with second place behind Max Verstappen.
And after a season where he was dropped by Red Bull over the summer break and moved to Toro Rosso because of poor results, it marks an amazing turnaround for the youngster.
Red Bull team boss Christian Horner says that key to what has happened was Gasly taking the right approach after being moved, and the way he felt liberated when some of the pressure on him fell away.
"I think the way he embraced the change," said Horner, when asked by Motorsport.com about the reasons for Gasly's turnaround with Toro Rosso.
"He had two choices. He could either have got depressed about it, or be grateful for the fact that he was still involved in Formula 1 and that Red Bull still believed in him. I think he embraced it rather than got dejected by it.
"And I think there was almost a slight relief as well because obviously the pressure only mounts [in F1], and he came into the season after two crashes. Then, there were some really tough races for him and you guys [the media] don't cut much slack either.
"So the pressure only builds, and I think it was the right thing to remove him from that pressure. It's been good to see him really find his confidence at Toro Rosso."
Read Also:
- Gasly's podium finish "Incredible", says Verstappen
- Gasly: "Insane" podium "the best day of my life"
Although Red Bull felt that Gasly needed to be moved away from the main team earlier this year after failing to deliver, Horner has not ruled out him being picked again in the future if he continues to show good form.
"If we didn't believe he was a candidate for us we would have released him from the contract," said Horner. "But obviously we still believe in his talents and that's why we retained him within the group."
We want your opinion!
What would you like to see on Motorsport.com?
Take our 5 minute survey.
- The Motorsport.com Team
Read and post comments
Read also :
Share Or Save This Story
Copy link
Share on Viber
Previous article Steiner: "Unbelievable" MGU-K glitch cost us podium shot
Next article Allison's first GP in lead role marred by "mess of a race"
Top Comments
There are no comments at the moment. Would you like to write one?
View More & Comment
More from
Jonathan Noble
Brundle awarded OBE in King’s New Year’s honours
Formula 1
Formula 1
Brundle awarded OBE in King’s New Year’s honours
The new rules dilemma that will define the 2025 F1 season
Formula 1
Formula 1
The new rules dilemma that will define the 2025 F1 season
Verstappen issues Red Bull title warning in push for RB21 progress
Formula 1
Formula 1
Australian GP
Verstappen issues Red Bull title warning in push for RB21 progress
More from
Pierre Gasly
Alpine drivers penalised post-race, Ryo Hirakawa scores on F1 debut at Mexico GP
Formula 1
Formula 1
Mexican GP
Alpine drivers penalised post-race, Ryo Hirakawa scores on F1 debut at Mexico GP
“I couldn’t disappear” – Oliver Bearman rues “crazy” penalty for Pierre Gasly clash
Formula 1
Formula 1
United States GP
“I couldn’t disappear” – Oliver Bearman rues “crazy” penalty for Pierre Gasly clash
More from
Racing Bulls
Liam Lawson’s remarkable form is giving Red Bull a headache for 2027
Formula 1
Formula 1
Mexican GP
10 h
Liam Lawson’s remarkable form is giving Red Bull a headache for 2027
Penalty drops Oscar Piastri out of F1 Mexico GP points
Formula 1
Formula 1
Mexican GP
Penalty drops Oscar Piastri out of F1 Mexico GP points
Latest news
Liam Lawson’s remarkable form is giving Red Bull a headache for 2027
Formula 1
F1 Formula 1
Mexican GP
10 h
Liam Lawson’s remarkable form is giving Red Bull a headache for 2027
Hanley Motorsports announces multi-class IMSA arrival with BMW support and DXDT deal
IMSA
IMSA IMSA 10 h
Hanley Motorsports announces multi-class IMSA arrival with BMW support and DXDT deal
Ryan Preece will switch to No. 6 for 2027 NASCAR Cup season
NASCAR Cup
NAS NASCAR Cup
Martinsville II
12 h
Ryan Preece will switch to No. 6 for 2027 NASCAR Cup season
Feature
Discover prime content
Top 10 F1 cars of the 1960s
Formula 1
By Kevin Turner
Top 10 F1 cars of the 1960s
Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
You have 2 options:
- Become a subscriber.
- Disable your adblocker.
Subscribe now Already subscribed? Sign in here
Already disabled your adblocker?
Reload page
Manage Alerts
Subscribe