Growing up in France during a very successful period for French football, Pierre Gasly developed a huge passion for the sport alongside motor racing.
The likes of Thierry Henry, Patrick Vieira and Marcel Desailly lead France to an iconic World Cup victory back in 1998, however like many young football fans, there was only one player that Gasly truly idolised.
The Frenchman has raced with the number ten on his car for as long as he has been allowed, explaining over and over again that this is because of his idolisation for Zinedine Zidane.
The French football legend has now surprisingly been announced as an ambassador for French F1 team Alpine, with the 50-year-old being announced during the team’s launch of the A523.
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As expected, Gasly was slightly overwhelmed by the announcement that his idol is set to become involved in his team, admitting he was lost for words in his interviews.
“I don’t think I have the words,” he gasped after the announcement of Zidane’s arrival.
“Since I was a kid I’ve been a huge dan of him. My racing number, number ten, is partly thanks to him. I started playing football when I was five until I was 11 years old.
“Definitely the biggest legend or icon in France. I’ve been able to spend like half an hour with him backstage and I was asking him tons of questions about his experiences, his career. He’s a very, very inspiring person.”
When asked why he decided to become an ambassador for Alpine, Zidane explained that a meeting with Alpine CEO Laurent Rossi and racing director Davide Brivio was enough to convince him to get onboard.
“Why? It’s always a meeting that is starting something and I know that I had the opportunity to meet Laurent with Davide and the whole team,” he explained.
“The Alpine team, for a Grand Prix and I think we had a good exchange, we shared everything together and I think Alpine and Laurent has a project to give the opportunity to young people.
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“To have their opportunities for all the young talent. I was very interested in this project and I said ‘why not see us again?’
“We are talking about it tonight and we are altogether here tonight.”
With Alpine finishing as the best of the rest team last season, the team will hope that Zidane’s influence can help to power them into a potential battle with the big teams in 2023.