Pierre Gasly explains how 2025 Alpine driver Jack Doohan helped him score points at the Dutch Grand Prix

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Outside of the top four Formula 1 teams, few would have expected Alpine star Pierre Gasly to be the best of the rest at Zandvoort on Sunday.

His Alpine teammate Esteban Ocon had a torrid weekend after being eliminated in Q1 and failing to ever look like he could challenge for a place in the top ten.

However, Pierre Gasly drove beautifully after a tough Friday and not only did he reach the final stage of qualifying, but he held off both Aston Martin drivers to score a couple of precious points.

READ MORE: Everything you need to know about Alpine F1 Team from team principal to lineage

Gasly was delighted after the race and speaking on the Formula 1 Post Race Show, gave his opinion on new teammate Jack Doohan.

Doohan was confirmed as Alpine’s second driver for 2025 at the beginning of the race weekend.

The young Australian has been vital behind the scenes to Alpine with his tireless simulator work.

Gasly explained that Doohan’s hours in the sim during the Dutch Grand Prix ended up giving him a much-needed boost.

It may have just been the difference between Gasly moving above Oliver Bearman in the Drivers’ Championship and staying 15^th in the standings.

READ MORE: Who is 2025 Alpine F1 driver Jack Doohan? Everything you need to know

Pierre Gasly highlights Jack Doohan’s impact after brilliant Dutch Grand Prix performance

Asked about his new teammate for 2025, Gasly said: “It’s exciting! I mean I’m stoked for Jack, I’ve seen him working with the team for the past year and a half.

“Obviously, he’s been very involved in the race team with the work in the simulator and in testing, so I saw him always keeping a close eye on what we’ll be doing with Esteban and I’m very, very happy.

“We’ll work very hard to make sure we’ve got a stronger car for next season and hopefully he’ll have a bit more fun than we’re having at the minute!”

Gasly was then asked about what made the difference on Sunday for Alpine after a tough practice session and he added: “Yeah I mean, Friday was very tough, I mean we didn’t run in P1 we just had that P2 and whatever we had there wasn’t great.

“The feel was just wrong and we made a couple of setup changes following actually Jack’s simulator sessions, so it was good work there and it just seemed to click a bit more on Saturday.”

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

Alpine’s Jack Doohan announcement slated by Ralf Schumacher

Doohan has appeared to be the most likely candidate to race alongside Alpine for some time but the announcement took one driver by surprise.

Mick Schumacher was also a candidate to return to the grid with the French team having raced for their WEC outfit this year.

His uncle Ralf Schumacher was upset with the nature of Doohan’s announcement as Mick only discovered he hadn’t got the drive via social media.

Mick Schumacher is now at risk of missing out on an F1 seat altogether but could be offered a lifeline elsewhere in the paddock sooner than expected.

Logan Sargeant’s struggles at Williams mean he’s in real danger of being dropped before the end of the season.

Schumacher is an option to replace Sargeant but with Carlos Sainz already signed for 2025, it would only be a short-term return unless he can convince Sauber to offer him a seat alongside Nico Hulkenberg.