George Russell had to concede defeat to Pierre Gasly twice in one day. Just 15 minutes before qualifying for the Italian Grand Prix began, Russell lost a friendly chess match against the Alpine driver. He thought he could get revenge on track, but Gasly beat him again.
Gasly secured his first career pole position at Monza, edging out Russell by a narrow margin. It was a historic moment for Gasly and Alpine, the team formerly known as Renault.
A Chess Premonition Come True
Russell admitted he underestimated Gasly after the chess loss, thinking to himself, "I think I'll beat you in qualifying." But the final result told a different story. Gasly was consistently fast from Q1 and fully deserved the sweet result.
This was Gasly's first pole in Formula 1. The last time a French driver took pole at this circuit was 29 years ago, when Jean Alesi did it for Benetton. Monza is also the venue of Gasly's only grand prix victory in 2020.
Russell Praises Gasly and Alpine's Performance
Despite the disappointment of missing pole, Russell offered genuine praise for Gasly and the Alpine team. He also mentioned that his qualifying lap was slightly disrupted by Max Verstappen opening the lap ahead, forcing him to run very close behind.
"Pierre and Alpine have been super fast even from Q1. So happy to see them get a good result," Russell said. Now all eyes are on Sunday's race, where Russell and Gasly will battle again for victory.
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