French Driver Pierre Gasly Wins First F1 Pole at Monza

Nine years of chasing the dream finally paid off for Pierre Gasly at one of racing's most iconic tracks.

The Alpine driver secured his first Formula 1 pole position at Italy's Monza circuit on September 5, 2026, beating Mercedes driver George Russell by barely half a tenth of a second. He was the last driver to cross the line in qualifying's final session, snatching the top spot when it mattered most.

The result marks a historic double first. Gasly became the first French driver to claim pole since Jean Alesi at the same track in 1997, nearly three decades ago. Alpine scored its first pole position ever as a team, and the first for the Enstone racing facility since 2009.

Gasly positioned himself perfectly behind the Ferrari cars and found the speed when the pressure peaked. Russell appeared set for pole after his final attempt, while Ferrari drivers Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton both fell short. Then Gasly crossed the line and rewrote the order.

"It was amazing," Gasly said after qualifying. "From the first lap in Q1, I felt very good in the car. I tried to chip away a little bit, every single session, and it felt like a very good lap."

The Monza circuit holds special meaning for the French driver. He won his only Formula 1 race there in 2020, making this pole position his second major achievement at the Italian track. "I won my first race in Monza and got my first pole at this track," Gasly reflected. "It's something special around here."

Why This Inspires

Behind every pole position sits a team that refused to give up. Alpine managing director Steve Nielsen revealed the team had just installed major upgrades on Gasly's car, improvements they hadn't fully understood at the previous race. At Monza, everything clicked into place.

The timing couldn't be sweeter. Just days before qualifying, Alpine lost an appeal over a disappointing Monaco Grand Prix result. "When you think what the mood was in the camp when we got the result from Monaco, which honestly is going to annoy me for the rest of my life, it's a nice way to bounce back with pole position," Nielsen told Sky F1.

Nielsen admitted the team didn't expect to fight for pole. They focused on getting the gaps right, the strategy right, and letting their drivers execute without mistakes. The lap time proved the potential was there all along.

Now comes the bigger challenge. Starting from pole means nothing without converting it into results during Sunday's race. Nielsen summed up the team's approach heading into race day: "Good starts, good strategy, good pit stops. Who knows? Let's try to win it!"

After nine years of trying and one unforgettable qualifying session, Gasly proved that patience and persistence still matter in the fastest sport on Earth.