Pierre Gasly admitted Red Bull Toro Rosso Honda did not have the pace to challenge for points across the whole Singapore Grand Prix weekend, with the Frenchman ultimately being forced to settle for thirteenth in the classified standings.
Gasly, who will make the switch to Aston Martin Red Bull Racing in 2019 as a replacement for Daniel Ricciardo, was one of only two drivers outside of the top ten to start on the Hypersoft Pirelli tyre along with team-mate Brendon Hartley, but found the going tough with it, particularly towards the end of the stint.
Once he made his pit stop he found himself at the back of the train behind Sergey Sirotkin that meant even a lucky points finish went out of the window, and Gasly crossed the line in fourteenth, which became thirteenth when Romain Grosjean was handed a time penalty for ignoring blue flags.
“It was a bit of a strange race today,” said Gasly. “I had a good start, recovered three positions and was P12 after the first lap.
“We gambled with the tyres and started with the Hypersoft, but in the end it was much more difficult than we thought, and I really struggled to make them last at the end of the stint.
“After the first pit stop, I was in the mess with Sirotkin and Grosjean, and with all of the blue flags I lost quite a bit of time. I tried to do the maximum inside of the car, but I didn’t have the pace to fight for points all weekend.”
