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Pierre Gasly says that Max Verstappen will be a perfect reference for him throughout the 2019 season. The two will partner each other at Red Bull this year, which will be Gasly's first at the energy drink squad.
2018 marked Gasly's opening full season in F1, however Red Bull took the decision to promote him following Daniel Ricciardo's shock announcement that he would be leaving for Renault.
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Since joining the energy drink squad in 2016, Verstappen has established himself as one of the fastest drivers on the grid - scoring seven podiums at the last nine races of the 2018 season. And Gasly believes that Verstappen's benchmark will be a good opportunity to prove his worth.
"I think Max at the moment, based on the performance he showed last year he's clearly - it's difficult to compare with Lewis [Hamilton] or Seb [Vettel]," Gasly told Autosport.
"But he's clearly one of the best and most talented guys in the paddock at the moment. So for me it's perfect to have a reference like him.
"I'm sure it's going to be useful for myself to keep learning in Formula 1 and achieve a better performance for myself and I always find it good to have a fast team-mate because that's how you manage to extract the best of yourself as well."
Gasly prides himself on his qualifying abilities and believes he can fight at the front this year if Red Bull provides a car that competitive over one lap.
"I think I'm a quite objective guy and I know when I do things right and when I do something wrong. And then I always learn from these kind of situations. I always question myself about what can I do better to improve myself as a driver, to make the best of the package I have.
"And then after I believe that I have good speed, I'm able to extract everything over one lap, which is important in qualifying.
"We all know that if you have a good starting position, it makes the race a lot easier, and I think that's one of my strengths that I will have to try to make the best out with Red Bull if we have a good performance over one lap."
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Replies (7)
Login to replyblade
Posts: 341
Better talk from Gasly in this interview - he cannot show any weakness, even if he is feeling some pressure, but for sure I dont see him beating Max in the first year, he'll be playing catch up probably for a year. Just hope RBR is more competitive this year to make it a three way fight, or 6 driver fight would be even better !
Rindtchamp
Posts: 304
Will he even be allowed to battle Max or is it going to purely be a #2 like Bottas?
xoya
Posts: 583
Given how Ricciardo "noped" outta RedBull, I think the answer to your question is clear.
ajpennypacker
Posts: 2,475
Gasly is in for a treat. He thinks he's special because he dominated Hartley. I still have my money on Gasly being average and Max absolutely humiliating him
mcbhargav
Posts: 1,332
Losing out to team mate consistently by .2 sec. On sundays, a gap of 1-5 positions. Final nail, press covering ‘Gasly is the new Bottas’.
Mansell
Posts: 104
Perfect reference of how not to behave.
blade
Posts: 341
Ha !!