Alpine driver Pierre Gasly recently admitted that fashion wasn’t always his strong suit. Growing up, he didn’t pay much attention to his outfits, often dabbling in trends and wearing whatever was considered cool instead of finding his own style.
This all changed in 2018 when Gasly joined Red Bull’s sister team, Toro Rosso, and moved to Italy. He initially settled in Bologna, near the team’s base in Faenza, before eventually relocating to Milan two years later. Living in Italy, especially Milan, had a significant impact on his fashion sense.
“The first time I went [to Milan], I was visiting a couple of apartments and walking through the city, and then I saw [that] the people were so well dressed,” Gasly said in an exclusive interview with whowhatwear.com. The elegance of the people from Milan inspired him to step up his game. “It just raised the bar,“ he admitted.
“drivers are wearing more fashion these days in the paddock, I feel like suddenly everybody is able to express themselves more…”
Pierre Gasly: “Thanks to…? I think it’s important to say it: without [Lewis] it would be different these days.” ️️️pic.twitter.com/GPRgkev1gX
— deni (@fiagirly) February 8, 2024
Milan is known worldwide as a fashion capital, renowned for its sophisticated and stylish residents. For Gasly, it wasn’t about wearing high-end brands but more about representing oneself through thoughtful and elegant fashion choices.
He wanted to show that he cared about his appearance and how others perceived him. When Gasly first entered the world of Formula 1, expressing oneself through fashion wasn’t widely accepted.
He recalled how drivers had little choice in what they wore, from specific hairstyles to certain shoes and pants. “It was so different,” Gasly explained. “I wasn’t allowed to wear what I wanted.”
He then mentioned that he was even told to dress his hair a certain way. According to him, it was Lewis Hamilton who changed the laws surrounding fashion in the world of F1.
Pierre Gasly credits Lewis Hamilton for breaking the barriers for fashion in F1
Things have changed significantly since a few years ago when it comes to fashion, largely thanks to Hamilton. The Briton’s bold fashion choices during race weekends initially drew criticism, with many questioning his focus on racing.
However, Hamilton’s consistent performances on the track eventually silenced his critics and opened doors for other drivers to express themselves. “It was something that evolved, majority thanks to Lewis [Hamilton], who broke the codes back then,” Gasly explained.
“[He was] kind of disrupting the laws of how things were at the time,” the Frenchman added. Hamilton’s courage to experiment with his style has made him a fashion icon in the motorsport world, with his paddock outfits now highly anticipated.
Lewis Hamilton’s recent Fits! pic.twitter.com/pbqKIShBHy
— Outlander Magazine (@StreetFashion01) March 28, 2024
Gasly praised Hamilton for paving the way and making it easier for younger drivers to be themselves. “It really broke [down] the doors and opened [them] for the younger generation to actually be able to be more like themselves,” Gasly further explained.
Another factor that has helped Gasly refine his fashion sense is his partner, Francisca “Kika” Cerqueira Gomes, who is a Portuguese model. Gasly began dating Gomes in 2022, and it seems that her influence has undoubtedly contributed to his evolving style.
