Gasly snatches maiden F1 pole at Monza nine years after his first grand prix start

Pierre Gasly ended a nine-year wait for his first Formula 1 pole position at Monza on Saturday, steering his Alpine to the top of the grid by 0.060 seconds ahead of Mercedes’ George Russell at the 2025 Italian Grand Prix qualifying session.

The result carries a particular resonance for the 30-year-old Frenchman. His only previous grand prix victory came at the same circuit in 2020, when he drove for AlphaTauri and celebrated on an empty podium during the COVID-19 pandemic. This time, Gasly was able to salute a packed grandstand, his crew, and his parents watching from the paddock.

“Let’s go, let’s go! I’ve been waiting for that one!” Gasly shouted over team radio the moment his engineer confirmed pole. In parc ferme, he was characteristically understated: “I like this track.”

Gasly had already impressed with third place after the first runs in Q3, but it was his final flying lap that proved decisive. He found a tow from Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton through Monza’s high-speed layout, allowing Alpine’s powerful Mercedes power unit to do its work and leapfrog both Russell and McLaren’s Oscar Piastri.

“From the first lap in Q1, I felt very good in the car, trying to chip away a little bit every single session,” Gasly said. “I am so happy — it’s been nine years trying to chase and get the opportunity to get a pole position. To win my first race in Monza and get my first pole on this track, I think there’s something special around here.”

Russell, the pre-event favourite, admitted he was briefly stunned to have been beaten but was generous in his praise. “Massive congratulations to Pierre, because that’s an incredible performance,” the Mercedes driver said. “We actually finished a game of chess 15 minutes before qualifying and he beat me there, and I thought: ‘I think I’ll beat you in qualifying.’ And here we are, he’s ahead of me again.”

Russell added that his own lap had been compromised by Max Verstappen opening the run ahead of him, but acknowledged that Gasly and Alpine had been quick throughout the session.

Piastri and Charles Leclerc were set to share the second row, though the McLaren driver was summoned by FIA stewards for an impeding incident and faces a potential grid penalty ahead of the race.