Pierre Gasly says Alpine’s 2026 car is the best of his career so far

Pierre Gasly has delivered a bold verdict on Alpine’s 2026 Formula 1 challenger, describing it as the best car he has driven in his career after holding off Max Verstappen for seventh place at the Japanese Grand Prix.

A statement performance at Suzuka

The 30-year-old qualified seventh in the last three sessions — including the sprint — beating both Red Bulls on each occasion. In the Grand Prix itself, Gasly initially pulled clear of the chasing pack, building a three-second cushion over Verstappen before a safety car wiped out his advantage.

Gasly resisted sustained pressure from the four-time world champion and even reclaimed position after briefly being passed on lap 48. At the chequered flag, he was just 0.337 seconds ahead.

“It was a long race, I must say, with a lot of pressure,” Gasly told Canal+. “Early in the race, I was quite comfortable with the mediums. But there have been many safety cars this year, so I knew it was bound to happen at some point.”

He admitted the second half of the race demanded complete commitment.

“The second part of the race was a bit different. He put huge pressure on me throughout the race, so I really had to focus to try and be as fast as possible – there was no management with those tyres – and make no mistake, because he was very, very close.”

While Verstappen appeared stronger on the hard compound, Gasly and Alpine executed when it mattered.

“He managed to stay quite close, so they did a bit better than us on hard tyres. But in the end, we managed to keep him behind and get that seventh place.”

Alpine’s step forward

Alpine’s one-lap pace has underlined its progress. The team had the eighth-fastest car in Australian Grand Prix qualifying, but improved to fourth-quickest in both Shanghai and Suzuka.

That upward trajectory prompted Gasly’s striking assessment.

“I think, for now, this is the best car I’ve had in my career, perhaps alongside the 2021 AlphaTauri,” he said, referencing the AT02 he drove to 16 top-six qualifying results in 22 rounds.

Three races into the season, Gasly is one of only six drivers to have scored points at every Grand Prix. He sits eighth in the drivers’ championship with 15 points — again ahead of Verstappen — while Alpine narrowly leads Red Bull in the fight for fifth in the constructors’ standings.

Momentum and opportunity

Gasly believes the platform is strong, even if there are clear areas to refine.

“I think we’ve got a good baseline,” he explained. “I’m quite happy to see that the car has seemed to work well over the first few weekends, we’ve managed to have performance all around. We know our limitations and what we need to work on. But we have one month ahead of us, we’re working on stuff for Miami, so overall it bodes well.”

Encouraged by steady gains through the Japanese weekend, Gasly highlighted the competitive gaps around him.

“I’m happy with this weekend, the team did a good job, we made decent progress throughout the weekend. We managed to open up a pleasant gap to [Liam] Lawson, who I believe finished 18 seconds behind us, and we’re seven seconds away from the Ferrari [of Lewis Hamilton] in front. So if we keep moving forward, I hope we can catch the leading pack.”

Alpine’s focus on the new regulations, combined with its current aerodynamic testing allocation after finishing last in 2025, has provided a foundation for resurgence. If the early trend continues, Gasly’s claim about the car’s quality may soon look less like optimism — and more like a warning to the established order.