Italian Grand Prix: Pierre Gasly reflects on highs and lows of last 18 months after first F1 victory at Monza

AlphaTauri driver secured the first victory of his career a year after being dropped by Red Bull

Pierre Gasly takes in the podium after winning the Italian Grand Prix (Getty)

A speechless Pierre Gasly struggled to comprehend his maiden Formula One victory after taking an unlikely victory in the Italian Grand Prix, continuing a rollercoaster 18 months for the first Frenchman to top the podium in 24 years.

The AlphaTauri driver secured one of the most surprising victories in recent F1 history, becoming the first first-time winner since Charles Leclerc last year by emerging out in front of a chaotic red-flag disrupted race at Monza.

With Lewis Hamilton taken out of the running by a 10-second stop-and-go penalty for stopping while the pits were closed, and neither Valtteri Bottas nor Max Verstappen taking advantage of the opportunity presented in front of them, Gasly emerged in a fascinating battle with McLaren’s Carlos Sainz, with the latter attempting to chase down the former over a 26-lap shootout.

The race had to be stopped for barrier repairs after Charles Leclerc’s terrible accident just after the halfway point, which the Ferrari driver thankfully emerged unhurt from, and from a standing restart Gasly was able to leapfrog Lance Stroll to move into the lead once Hamilton disappeared from view.

Despite Sainz chasing him down, Gasly held on to take victory by just 0.415s, sparking wild celebrations on the AlphaTauri pit wall for the Italian-based team. But the emotion quickly came pouring out of Gasly, who since being dropped by Red Bull halfway through last season has had the highs of a second and first position along with the desperate low of losing close friend Anthoine Hubert.

“Honestly, I’m lost for words for what’s just happened to us,” Gasly said. “It’s unbelievable.

“I’ve been through so many things in the last 18 months and it’s better than anything I ever expected. We focussed with AlphaTauri since I joined them last year, day by day, week by week, improving ourselves and getting stronger every race.

“They gave me my first podium in F1 last year in Brazil and today they gave me my first win in F1 in Italy at Monza for an Italian team. I don’t know what to say, to be honest. It's just unbelievable.

“I’m not someone who gives up on anything. I’ve had to fight for everything I wanted in my life since I was in karting until now in F1, and that’s still the case. My drive to be better, to be stronger, I know is so strong.

“When I was in that position I knew what I wanted and I knew that if I didn’t win that race and I got passed in the final laps, I would have been so sad. For P2, I know myself, and I would not have been happy so I gave everything I had.”

Pierre Gasly celebra ganar el Gran Premio de Italia (Reuters)

Gasly was among the handful of drivers who benefitted from the safety car caused by Kevin Magnussen’s retirement, having already pitted for new tyres when the rest of the field hadn’t. Once the red flag stoppage came to a end, Gasly restarted the race in third but quickly moved into the lead with Mercedes and Red Bull out of the equation, and the slow-moving Alfa Romeo of Kimi Raikkonen allowed the Frenchman to pull away at the front of the field and build what would prove to be an insurmountable gap - though it very nearly came at a cost in the closing stages.

“I pushed so hard at the beginning of the stint to open the gap and not give the other guys the slipstream behind, and the last five laps were so difficult. I almost shunted like 10 times because I was pushing so hard and my tyres were gone, but I wanted that win so much and now we’ve done it, and it still feels weird to say we have done it,” Gasly added.

The 24-year-old becomes the first Frenchman to win a Grand Prix since Olivier Panis’ lone victory at the 1996 Monaco Grand Prix, and the image of himself standing in front of the backdrop of th French Tricolor meant just as much as the jubilation of his first career victory.

"I've always said coming in F1 that's one thing we need to change, because it's been so long [since a Frenchman won]," Gasly said.

"I never expected that it would happen to us with AlphaTauri. We just kept focusing on ourselves since last year, working, improving step by step. It's crazy, honestly. I'm just so happy."