The 2025 season has not started well for Alpine. After a late-season flourish that helped them secure P6 in the Constructors’ standings last year, the Enstone-based team is the only one not to score even a single point so far in 2025.
But that squalid record might come to an end at the Sakhir International Circuit this weekend, during the Bahrain GP. The Alpine car has looked fast all throughout the sessions so far, and Pierre Gasly backed that up with a stunning qualifying performance on Saturday.
The #10 driver not only got his A525 into Q3 but doubled down on expectations after securing a third-row starting slot. On his final flying effort, Gasly‘s lap time was good enough for P5—and only three-tenths off Oscar Piastri’s pole-setting lap.
Having performed well in pre-season testing around the Bahrain track, Gasly will be fancying his chances of a solid points finish in Sunday’s Grand Prix that helps Alpine open their account. Knowing that he has a quick-enough car in Bahrain, the Frenchman has sounded the alarms for Alpine’s rivals after his stunning showing in qualifying.
“When you are 3 tenths off pole, it’s not that far off. The front grip.was very strong. It’s nice when you are driving the track and the track not driving you,” he said as quoted on X (formerly Twitter).
Gasly’s confidence was oozing, given that he was one of the quickest drivers across all three parts of qualifying and ended up beating Max Verstappen and Lando Norris, who are the top two in the championship, as things stand.
Take a bow Pierre #BahrainGP pic.twitter.com/BqyRuhwxkc
— Autosport (@autosport) April 12, 2025
On the other side of the Alpine garage as well, there was hope for Jack Doohan, who has been struggling in the opening three rounds of the 2025 season. But a testament to the A525’s competency in Bahrain is the fact that even Doohan bagged a solid result for himself—narrowly missing out on Q3 with a P11 start for the race on Sunday.
Can Gasly pull off a sensational result for Alpine in Bahrain?
Despite being quick over a single lap, the main challenge for the Frenchman will come in the Grand Prix on Sunday. F1 cars are notorious for behaving strangely over high fuel loads, and the cars behind him might cause the #10 driver some problems.
In the starting phases, Gasly’s biggest headache will be the MCL39 of Lando Norris. Despite having the strongest package in the field, the #4 driver was unable to muster a starting position higher than P6.
However, he will be keen to unleash the race pace out of his car, and that could make things tricky for Gasly to keep him behind. But a good points haul is still on the card for the 2020 Italian GP winner.
The likes of Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton have been evidently struggling for performance and balance at the Sakhir International Circuit. And if these issues persist for the duo, Gasly could bring in a solid points finish for the Enstone-based team and end their points drought this season.
