Monza, September 5 (Daily Kiran) : Pierre Gasly achieved a significant milestone by securing his first Formula 1 pole position during the thrilling qualifying session for the Italian Grand Prix at Monza. The Alpine driver outpaced Mercedes’ George Russell and McLaren’s Oscar Piastri to claim the top spot.
In Q3, Gasly completed a remarkable final lap with a time of 1:21.786, solidifying his position at the front. This success comes after Gasly previously won his first F1 race at Monza in 2020, maintaining a strong presence throughout Saturday’s qualifying sessions.
Initially, Gasly was in third place behind Russell and Piastri during the early laps of Q3. However, he saved his best performance for the end. His final lap propelled him to the top of the timing sheets, creating a buzz throughout the paddock.
The impact of Alpine’s updated car, featuring a Mercedes engine, was evident as it enabled Gasly to perform well at the high-speed “Temple of Speed.” Russell finished in second place, while Piastri rounded out the top three.
Despite Ferrari’s strong practice performance, they could not convert that into pole position. Charles Leclerc qualified fourth, with Lewis Hamilton in fifth. Max Verstappen from Red Bull placed sixth, while local favorite Kimi Antonelli secured seventh before receiving an engine penalty.
Franco Colapinto secured eighth place, ensuring two Alpine cars made the top ten, surpassing McLaren’s Lando Norris and Racing Bulls’ Arvid Lindblad. Norris faced brake issues during qualifying, similar to his teammate Piastri.
Hamilton narrowly advanced from Q2 to Q3. Audi’s Gabriel Bortoletto fell just 1,000th of a second short of qualifying for Q3 and will start from 11th. He outperformed his Audi teammate Nico Hülkenberg and Haas-Ferrari driver Oli Bearman. Liam Lawson, facing a grid penalty due to a power unit change, finished 14th after encountering Piastri during his final Q2 lap, an incident noted by the stewards.
Yuki Tsunoda, competing in his second weekend as a Racing Bulls driver, faced disappointment in the first qualifying round, finishing 17th, while Lindblad secured the 10th spot.
Alexander Albon, who received a penalty for an engine issue, assisted his Williams teammate Carlos Sainz by towing him in Q1 but ended up in 18th place, ahead of only Cadillac driver Valtteri Bottas and Aston Martin drivers Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll.
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