Gasly: Alpine's Fifth-Place Ambition a 'Big Ask' but Still in Mind

Pierre Gasly has acknowledged that Alpine's chances of securing fifth in the 2026 F1 constructors' championship are a "big ask," but the target remains in the back of the team's collective mind. Currently sixth, Alpine trails Racing Bulls by 33 points, with the Faenza squad lifted by Liam Lawson's standout form.

Why it matters:

After a disastrous 2025 campaign that left them last, Alpine's resurgence as a Mercedes power unit customer has been notable. But closing a 33-point gap in the remaining races requires consistent points, and recent results have tailed off. Gasly's realism underscores the challenge.

The details:

• Gasly told media, including RacingNews365: "Objectively, it's a big gap. Looking at the number of points we've scored in the last few weekends, it's definitely going to be a big ask."
• Alpine has shown pace but struggled to convert it into top-10 finishes, especially around the summer break.
• The 30-year-old is instead focusing on his own performance: "I don't want to be too focused on the championship. I just want to look at my own performance, keep delivering Q3s whenever we have the pace to do it and translate it into points on Sunday."
• He added: "I'll try to be in the points every Sunday. Whether it's going to be enough or not, we'll find out at the end of the year. But just try to take one session at a time."

What's next:

Alpine's immediate priority is maximizing its race weekends rather than obsessing over the standings. If Gasly can consistently reach Q3 and score points, the gap to Racing Bulls could shrink. But with Lawson in exceptional form, the French team faces an uphill battle to snatch fifth.