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Pierre Gasly believes Alpine has the foundations in place to challenge Formula 1’s leading teams in 2026, declaring that the Enstone-based outfit is no longer operating in the same league as it was just a year ago.
After a difficult 2025 campaign spent as a clear backmarker, Alpine ended its engine programme and switched to Mercedes powertrains, committing early to the development of its 2026 car. The early signs suggest that decision is beginning to pay dividends, with the team re-emerging as a genuine midfield contender.
Alpine’s progress has been visible from the opening rounds. In Australia, Gasly edged childhood friend-turned-rival Esteban Ocon to secure the final point in 10th place. But it was in Shanghai that the Frenchman delivered a statement weekend.
Gasly qualified seventh in both sessions, outpacing the Red Bulls in the process. Although excessive tyre degradation dropped him to 11th in the sprint, Sunday told a different story. He surged to sixth in the grand prix, equalling Alpine’s best result since his fifth-place finish at the 2024 Qatar Grand Prix.
“It's definitely encouraging for the whole team to see that in some sessions we can be fourth-fastest,” Gasly said. “Obviously, it's very close behind, and the gap in front of us, I mean, looking at today with three tenths to the McLaren… they are not miles ahead, so we’ve just got to focus on our thing and keep bringing performance, and hopefully we can slowly join that pack ahead of us.”
When asked whether China exceeded expectations after pre-season testing, Gasly admitted: “I'm not going to lie, a bit better.”
Gasly was particularly struck by Red Bull’s fluctuating form. In Melbourne, the team appeared firmly in contention, yet in Shanghai its lead driver Max Verstappen was more than a second off pole and 0.14s slower than Gasly in qualifying.
“We don't think we're quite there yet, so I think they just seem to have dropped a tiny bit this weekend, we made a step forward,” Gasly explained. “I think generally I'm pretty pleased with what I've seen this weekend, that we have the potential to be in that pack.”
Still, he is under no illusions about the pace of development across the grid.
“Things are going to move very quickly this season and it's important for us to move fast as well and faster than the others, make sure we stay in the right train for the rest of the year.”
Shanghai could have delivered even more. Gasly was running comfortably in fifth, over five seconds clear of team-mate Franco Colapinto, when a safety car was triggered after Lance Stroll stopped on track.
At the restart, Oliver Bearman overtook him.
“For some reason I didn't have the power or boost,” Gasly said, unable to retaliate despite what he felt was slightly stronger pace. He ultimately finished sixth, two seconds behind the Haas and 21 seconds ahead of seventh-placed Liam Lawson.
“Deep inside me, the very competitive Pierre is a little annoyed not to get that P5,” he admitted.
Yet perspective tempers the frustration.
“Looking at ‘25 where we were and where we are now, it's a completely different league, so I'm very pleased. We did a good job in qualifying, a couple of tenths on the McLaren. The first stint I wasn't losing massive ground compared to the Ferrari. There's still many little things which we need to fine-tune and fix, which are not like unfixable limitations.”
That belief — that the car’s weaknesses are manageable rather than structural — underpins his optimism.
Gasly insists Melbourne was not representative of Alpine’s true potential, arguing that “if we come back in Melbourne right now, I’ll be in Q3.” After Shanghai, he sits seventh in the drivers’ championship, ahead of names such as Verstappen and Oscar Piastri.
The objective now is clear.
“We've got some limitations with the car, which we're working on, and I feel this weekend we've definitely made a step forward, not with parts, but for whatever reason, small tweaks we've done on the car,” he said. “We see we have some performance and we know we still have a lot of performance to find in a few areas with the current package we've got.”
“The target is just to hopefully create a bit of a gap with the guys behind and come knock at the heels of the guys in front and hopefully join the battle. Whether it will be achievable, I don't know. But all I know is the guys are working really hard and there is more coming. Just this, in itself, is enough to bring some excitement to me.”
For Alpine, the reset after 2025 appears to be gathering momentum. For Gasly, the signs are clear: the team is no longer merely surviving in the midfield — it is edging toward the fight ahead, with 2026 firmly in its sights.
He’s a software engineer with a deep passion for Formula 1 and motorsport. He co-founded Formula Live Pulse to make live telemetry and race insights accessible, visual, and easy to follow.
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