Official: Pierre Gasly replaces Daniil Kvyat at Toro Rosso
The Toro Rosso team has confirmed that Pierre Gasly will make his Formula 1 debut at the next Grand Prix in Malaysia, replacing Daniil Kvyat. This replacement is expected to involve several races until the end of the season.
Dramatic turn of events in the small world of Formula 1 with Toro Rosso’s announcement this morning confirming the debut of Pierre Gasly in place of Daniil Kvyat!
While everyone thought that Carlos Sainz’s loan to Renault in 2018 would hasten the end of the season for the Spaniard to make way for the Frenchman, it is ultimately Daniil Kvyat who bears the brunt of a very disappointing season with only 4 points scored – compared to 48 for Sainz, and a series of mistakes and off-track excursions, the latest being in Singapore.
Franz Tost, the Sporting Director of Scuderia Toro Rosso, had the difficult task in a statement of justifying the decision made by Red Bull’s decision-makers: Toro Rosso was designed by Red Bull to bring young talents from the junior program into Formula 1, and that is what we are doing by giving this opportunity to Pierre [Gasly]. He is next in line at Red Bull for this opportunity and has proven he deserves it, having won the GP2 title in 2016 and shown to be very competitive in Super Formula in Japan this year. There are genuine title chances, being only half a point behind the leader. For various reasons, sometimes due to technical issues, but others being his own mistakes, Daniil Kvyat hasn’t really shown his true potential this year; that’s why we are sidelining him for the next races. This will give us the opportunity to evaluate Pierre on track during a real race weekend.
It seems, however, that this replacement does not concern all the remaining Grand Prix of the season. Indeed, Gasly should have the opportunity to compete for the title in Super Formula during the final round of this championship, which will be held in Japan at the same time as the United States Grand Prix. Who will be in the second Toro Rosso car in Austin then? It seems unlikely that Kvyat will regain his place under these circumstances, even if Red Bull insists that he is still part of the family. The team could therefore take the opportunity to test a new driver who could team up with Gasly in 2018 if he proves himself. A new replacement would fall within the limit of four drivers per team allowed by the regulations in a season.
In the meantime, the Frenchman will fully enjoy the opportunity offered to him: « I would like to thank everyone who helped me obtain this opportunity in my motorsport career, especially Red Bull, Dr. Helmut Marko, and Scuderia Toro Rosso. This is a great opportunity for me. I feel as ready as possible, having had to be prepared for any eventuality in my role as Red Bull Racing’s third driver this year, and I will do my best to perform well with Scuderia Toro Rosso in the upcoming races. »
Very happy to join @ToroRossoSpy for the #MalaysianGP! Thanks to everyone involved, can’t wait to start my first @F1 GP this weekend. 🇲🇾 pic.twitter.com/8bya5Z6ZWa
— Pierre Gasly 🇫🇷 (@PierreGASLY) 26 septembre 2017
