Alice Powell thinks 28-y/o F1 driver ‘is just struggling’ at Japanese GP

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BBC pundit Alice Powell feels Pierre Gasly is ‘just struggling’ with a simple issue that his Alpine teammate Esteban Ocon is managing to get on top of at the Japanese GP.

The Enstone outfit once again failed to make Q3 in qualifying with either driver at Suzuka on Saturday. Alpine even saw Gasly fail to find a way out of Q1 for the fourth time in four meets to start his season. Ocon has even out-qualified the 28-year-old in each round this year, too.

Gasly has started his year by qualifying P20 at the Bahrain GP, P18 at the Saudi Arabian GP, P17 at the Australian GP and now P17 at the Japanese GP. Meanwhile, Ocon has started his season with P19, P17, P15 and P15 results in qualifying to lead Alpine’s early efforts in 2024.

Esteban Ocon opens a 4-0 lead over Alpine teammate Pierre Gasly in qualifying

Alpine saw Gasly miss out on a spot in Q2 for the first time in 2024 by just 0.156 seconds to Williams driver Alex Albon at the Japanese GP. Ocon crept into the top 15 with a 0.213s gap to Lance Stroll of Aston Martin in P16. But the 27-year-old then lapped 0.005s slower in Q2.

READ MORE: Alpine driver Pierre Gasly’s life outside F1 from net worth to girlfriend

No driver would set a slower time in Q2 than the 1:29.816 that Ocon achieved. Gasly’s best run in Q1 at the Japanese GP was only a 1:30.119 to continue his slow start to his season in 2024. The Frenchman will still hope to enjoy his best race of the campaign so far on Sunday.

Gasly is yet to score a point after he finished the Bahrain GP in P18 and the Australian GP in P13. The Alpine driver also retired from the Saudi Arabian GP with a gearbox issue. Ocon is also yet to record a point after finishing P17 in Sakhir, P13 in Jeddah and P16 in Melbourne.

Alice Powell feels Pierre Gasly is ‘just struggling’ to understand the 2024 Alpine car

Alpine knew they faced a tricky start to the year from pre-season testing after it highlighted that the A524 was overweight and lacking downforce compared to their rivals’ newest cars. The Renault-owned outfit’s ongoing plight also means they rank last in the team’s standings.

READ MORE: Alpine driver Esteban Ocon’s life outside F1 from net worth to girlfriend

Former W-Series driver Powell believes Gasly also faces an additional gripe compared to his Alpine teammate, Ocon, after qualifying at the Japanese GP. She feels the Rouen native has still not dialled in to the A524, whereas his compatriot from Evreux is getting comfortable.

“I think Gasly is just struggling to dial in with that Alpine,” Powell said on BBC Radio 5 Live Sports Extra. “But Ocon is feeling a little bit more comfortable in the car at the moment.”