Pierre Gasly is set to replace Fernando Alonso at Alpine at the end of the year, after senior Red Bull adviser Dr Helmut Marko said the team would be willing to release him from his contract.
Gasly made his Formula 1 debut with Red Bull’s sister team, Scuderia Toro Rosso as it was then called, at the 2017 Malaysian Grand Prix, and raced full-time with the outfit in 2018 .
After an impressive first year in the pinnacle of motorsport, the Frenchman was promoted to Red Bull Racing.
He partnered Max Verstappen, and after half-a-season of being comprehensively outperformed by the Dutch ace, he was demoted back to Toro Rosso.
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Despite some standpoint performances since his return, including victory at the 2020 Italian Grand Prix, Red Bull have snubbed him for Sergio Perez, resulting in the Frenchman growing frustrated.
Following Oscar Piastri publicly turning down Alpine’s offer of a drive for next year, it has been reported that the Enstone-based team are looking to sign Gasly.
This would give them an all-French driver line-up in 2023, though it should be noted that Alpine are also reportedly considering signing Daniel Ricciardo.
Addressing Gasly being linked with Alpine, Dr Marko has revealed to Auto Motor und Sport (AMuS) that Red Bull is willing to release him from his contract a year early.
Will Pierre Gasly join Alpine?
While the Frenchman is understood to be keen to get out of the Red Bull programme, after not being rewarded for his strong performances, a move to Alpine isn’t as clear-cut as it might initially seem.
This is because Gasly doesn’t enjoy a good relationship with Esteban Ocon, as the pair had a falling out many years ago and are understood to still be on bad terms.
This was recently brought up by ex-F1 racer Paul di Resta, who noted that most team-mates have struggled to have a good working relationship with Ocon.
“It’s no secret that he and Ocon don’t necessarily get on too well,” di Resta said.
“I don’t think too many team-mates get on with Ocon, to be honest.
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“You heard Fernando on the radio. They work together on track but off it? He can be quite difficult. Sergio Perez had the same issue.
“This is about compensation for [Alpine] to be able to then get Gasly.
“A double-French line-up would be great.
“Gasly in that system, with the way he is driving, would be a credit,” he added.