For Pierre Gasly, the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix in Jeddah was apparently an ordeal. After the race, the Frenchman spoke about his torment – in clear words.
What a race, what a duel between Max Verstappen and Charles Leclerc, what a finish. The Saudi Arabian Grand Prix captivated fans after the attack on a building near the track on Friday and Mick Schumacher’s serious accident in qualifying on Saturday (read more here) at least for the duration of the race, the focus was on the sport of Formula 1.
But while there was cheering at the front, the 50 laps on the street circuit in Jeddah were apparently torture for another driver: “For me, the last 15 laps were the most painful of my entire career,” explained Pierre Gasly afterwards on Sky. And further: “I don’t know what happened to my intestines. I thought I would die in the car. I screamed in pain.”
The driver from the Alpha Tauri racing team, which is affiliated with the Red Bull team, went into more detail: “In the last 10 laps, when braking and at every left turn, I had the feeling that someone was stabbing me in the gut. I was in massive pain. ” At the end of the race he “just counted down the laps. It was all about survival for me.”
It is still unclear what caused the pain: “I’ve already been to the doctor, we’ll see what it was,” the 26-year-old explained. “In any case, it was not a nice feeling.” 8th place in the final result was not really a consolation.