Are Albon and Gasly going to swap places again this year?
Albon was the only Red Bull or Toro Rosso driver in 2019 not to reach the podium – Daniil Kvyat finished third in Germany and Gasly second in Brazil.
Although the Thai rider has been solid, he hasn’t really impressed in 2020 as Red Bull might have hoped. Gasly, on the other hand, looks like a whole new pilot.
Albon’s season started with an unfortunate 13th place finish in the opening race in Austria, his RB16 having had an electronics problem a few laps after colliding with Lewis Hamilton as he battled for second place.
A week later, for the Styrian Grand Prix, Albon finished in a respectable fourth place, followed by a fine fifth place in Hungary starting from a modest 12th place as the car, normally at ease at the Hungaroring, did not live up to its reputation as a pre-race on this occasion.
The British Grand Prix weekend was mixed for Albon. He crashed during practice and again failed to qualify for Q3. After a collision in the first lap with Kevin Magnussen, he raced in the back for a long time before recovering to finish eighth.
Further down the grid, Gasly is in great shape, pretty much since his demotion. While many expected him to continue moping at the mental blow that accompanies his demotion, the Frenchman seems to have rediscovered his motivation and self-confidence.
He beat his compatriot Kvyat, demoted from Red Bull, 32-10 in the final nine rounds of last year’s championship, including a spectacular P2 in Brazil, and even held up against Hamilton to the finish line. to secure his first podium.
This year Gasly has had two good performances so far, finishing seventh in the first race in Austria and at Silverstone. Today, the French Alpha Tauri driver was the actor of a fantastic Saturday with a seventh place which places him ahead of the two Ferraris of Leclerc and Vettel.
Asked about his impressions after the qualifying session, Pierre Gasly said: “Within the team, I feel very good, they give me a competitive car. We always manage to improve the car between Friday and Saturday and I am very happy. My goal as a driver is obviously to fight for the podium and the victories, I did it in the other categories and I want to do it again. I have to push, get results and seize the opportunities that arise ”.
And for the dream is to return to Red Bull, he replied: “It is obvious that it is not for me to make the decision, it is the managers who evaluate the performances. Then there is politics, I don’t want to put too much energy into it. I think that by pushing always further, opportunities will present themselves. I want to do it every weekend, showing my potential ”.
It must be said that Gasly has been very impressive so far this year: “As a Red Bull contract driver my goal is to be in the fastest car, to fight for the best positions, and at the moment Red Bull has the fastest car”, Gasly recently said of a possible Red Bull comeback. “As long as I keep pushing I will always believe that an opportunity will present itself at some point. “
It’s almost a year after Gasly’s demotion and Albon’s promotion. As for the opportunity Gasly is talking about, could it come up soon?
Albon is aware that he has to show his worth in the next races. He knows how trigger-happy Red Bull can be when it comes to taking down their drivers.
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