Pierre Gasly has described his fourth-placed finish at the 2018 Formula 1 Bahrain Grand Prix as ‘just amazing’ and compares the team’s reaction to that for a win.
Gasly put his Toro Rosso sixth on the grid in qualifying, before Lewis Hamilton’s gearbox penalty moved him up to fifth.
The Frenchman then had the pace to maintain his position, as well as benefitting from the retirements of Daniel Ricciardo and Kimi Raikkonen.
Gasly’s fourth-place gave Toro Rosso their first points of the season, as well as being Honda’s best result since they re-entered F1 as an engine manufacturer in 2015.
“For the team it feels like [a win],” Gasly said. “It’s the best result for Honda as well since they came back. To give the best result of Honda in the last 10 years, after the experience I had with them in Super Formula when I had quite a close relationship with them.
“I think it’s just building the confidence of everyone and show them that we need to keep pushing because we have a good potential this year.
“They had a tough couple of years. It’s a great way to motivate them and show them they need to be pushing.
“To have my best qualifying ever in Q3 already was massively satisfying, but I think nothing can beat the feeling that we had with this fourth position. For me, honestly, it’s just amazing.
Gasly made his F1 debut in Malaysia in 2017, making Bahrain only his seventh Grand Prix.
“I never expected at the beginning of the season to be fighting for this kind of position.
“Of course as a driver, I’m a super-competitive person, and I want to be at the top, but you need to give time to everything.”
