Pierre Gasly admits it make take time but has vowed to give his all against Max Verstappen at Red Bull in 2019.
The Frenchman’s promotion to the senior team has an air of Daniil Kvyat’s early jump from Toro Rosso in 2015 with Gasly replacing Daniel Ricciardo after the Australian’s surprise Renault switch.
It is why expectations around the former GP2 champion aren’t as high as they are Charles Leclerc’s move to Ferrari despite the Monegasque actually being the less experienced of the pair in Formula 1.
And the 22-year-old believes next season will still be a development year for him albeit in a front-running car.
“I’m still only going to be in my second season of F1 so there are still a lot of things to learn and I still need to develop myself,” Gasly told Sky Sports.
“But I know I’m quick, I need to make the best out of my skills and my qualities but also work on all the areas I can improve.
“We will see how it goes against Max. He is one of the most talented drivers at the moment, it’s always good to be next to a competitive guy, and I’ll give him the hardest time I can and then try to develop as much as possible as a driver. We’ll see the result I get next year.”
Also Read:
- Gasly & Verstappen a ‘good partnership’ but ‘there will be problems’
- Red Bull: Immediate Gasly/Verstappen comparisons would be “unfair”
One asset potentially on Gasly’s side, however, is a year with the Honda engine at Toro Rosso which Verstappen will have to adapt to during testing and the early races and if the chances come, Pierre hopes to capitalise.
“Red Bull showed at the end of the season they were fighting for victories – Max got one in Mexico and was probably going to get one in Brazil as well,” he said.
“So clearly the package works and next year we also need to see how it goes with Honda. But I think it’ll be really interesting and if there is a winning car I’m sure he’s going to be right at the top and it will be my job to make sure I’m right there as well.”