Pierre Gasly finished sixth and eighth in Friday practice at the Mexico City Grand Prix, a day he described as one of Alpine’s better practice outings of the season. Team-mate Franco Colapinto missed the opening session, which went to Gabriele Mini for his first official Formula One running. He then ended the second session in 16th place.

Alpine left the Friday of the Mexico City Grand Prix weekend more optimistic than it expected. Pierre Gasly was the team’s quickest driver in both practice sessions. Franco Colapinto had a shorter day after handing his car to Gabriele Mini for the opening hour.

Gasly comfortable at altitude

Gasly set a time of 1min 19.210secs in Free Practice 1, good for sixth place. In Free Practice 2 he improved to 1min 18.407secs, which put him eighth. He also did the most running in the team, with 66 laps and 284 km (176 miles) on the C3, C4 and C5 tyre compounds.

The Frenchman said the thin air in Mexico City still makes the car feel unusual, but he was happier this year than on recent visits. He said only small details need work before qualifying, mainly braking and how the car copes with bumps in the high-speed sections.

“It has been a positively surprising Friday for us where we have had one of our better Practice days of the season so far.”

He also pointed out how close the field is: “The gaps are also small, only a few hundredths between a few cars, and it will be about putting it all together when it counts.”

Colapinto plays catch-up

Colapinto drove only in the second session. He completed 34 laps, covered 146 km (91 miles) on the C4 and C5 compounds and finished 16th with a 1min 19.132secs. The Argentine said the lap time did not reflect how he felt in the car. He put the gap partly down to a small mistake in the final sector on his Soft tyre run.

“The long run pace was also positive, so if we can qualify well, we should hopefully be in contention for some points this weekend,” Colapinto said.

A first official outing for Mini

Gabriele Mini made his debut in an official Formula One session in FP1. He was 14th with a 1min 19.946secs from 22 laps, or 95 km (59 miles), on the C3 and C5 compounds. According to the team, his programme focused on aero testing and data collection.

Mini thanked Executive Advisor Flavio Briatore, Managing Director Steve Nielsen and the team for the chance. He said waiting in the pit lane behind Lewis Hamilton was a highlight. He was also self-critical: “I did some good laps but if I am being critical of myself, I did not click everything together so that is something for me to look at and learn from.” He described the circuit as “tough on aero, tough on the power unit”.

Single-lap pace is the focus

Nielsen said the team could take a largely positive view of the day but stressed that the margins are very small, especially over one lap. He said the high-fuel running looked strong. He expects the field to be closer together in qualifying, so the team’s overnight work will focus on getting the most out of a single lap.

“Taking the day as a whole, I think we can be largely positive and confident heading into the rest of the weekend. We won’t rest on our laurels though and we know we still have work to do and it’s incredibly tight, particularly on one lap pace.”

Across the three drivers, Alpine’s A526 completed 122 laps and 525 km (326 miles) on Friday.

Facts: BWT Alpine F1 Team, Mexico City GP Friday

  • FP1: Pierre Gasly P6 (1min 19.210secs); Gabriele Mini P14 (1min 19.946secs)
  • FP2: Pierre Gasly P8 (1min 18.407secs); Franco Colapinto P16 (1min 19.132secs)
  • Laps: 122 in total (Gasly 66, Colapinto 34, Mini 22)
  • Distance: 525 km (326 miles) in total (Gasly 284 km, Colapinto 146 km, Mini 95 km)
  • Tyres: Gasly C3, C4, C5; Colapinto C4, C5; Mini C3, C5

Qualifying for the Mexico City Grand Prix takes place on Saturday.

Source: media.alpinecars.com