Pierre Gasly is being urged to use next year as a launchpad for a move away from the Red Bull stable in 2022.
The Frenchman was one of the standout performers from this season, claiming 10th in the Drivers’ Championship as he maximising the potential of an AlphaTauri car which wasn’t always in the leading midfield group.
And of course, there was one moment in particular which few will forget in a hurry.
“Watching Pierre win in Monza was probably my highlight of this season,” Karun Chandhok told Sky Sports.
“He is a lovely guy who has shown incredible mental strength after bouncing back from a very difficult 2019 where not only did his career look in tatters but he also lost his best friend in Anthoine Hubert.”
Gasly’s results though weren’t enough to even see him considered for Alex Albon’s seat at Red Bull next season, with the team opting to sign Sergio Perez instead.
And in Chandhok’s view, that is proof the 24-year-old needs to look elsewhere if he wants to realise his aspirations of fighting at the front in F1.
“While Monza was obviously a one-off, Pierre has well and truly beaten Daniil Kvyat and driven some great races, often with unconventional strategies, to rebuild his reputation,” he continued.
“I cannot see him getting back to the main Red Bull team, so I think he needs to use 2021 to build on the foundations of this year and launch himself into the driver market outside the Red Bull family.”
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Of course, Gasly was linked to Renault for a short time back in October and with big changes coming to F1 for 2022, he hopes to see more teams able to fight at the front.
“I do hope we can see something a bit similar to MotoGP, where my good friend Fabio Quartararo, for example, is in a privateer team that can fight for championship,” he said via MotorsportWeek.
“So, yeah, I think that will be amazing if we can see something similar in Formula 1.”
Asked if that would be possible at AlphaTauri from 2022, Gasly replied: “I think we should not underestimate the knowledge all the top teams have developed over the last few years, all the facilities they have built, that is something that they have already.
“You know, it’s not a short-term project. It’s a longer one. So, yeah, obviously, I’m quite optimistic in… I think the team is going to get stronger relative to the others.
“How far? I think it is too early to say. But I will be surprised if from 2022 we’ll already see the top teams mixed within the midfield teams.”