2023 Formula 1 Australian Grand Prix highlights

BWT Alpine F1 Team leaves Melbourne without points after an incident-packed 2023 Formula 1 Australian Grand Prix, which was red-flagged three times and featured three standing starts.

Pierre Gasly ran most of the race in fifth place and was on par with rivals ahead, chasing the podium places. Esteban Ocon was also running in the points towards the latter stages after fighting his way up the pack, which included a sublime move outside of Turn nine on Oscar Piastri until a late red flag for Kevin Magnussen’s Haas hitting the wall.

That left a two-lap sprint from a standing start to the end of the race. Pierre ran wide at Turn 1 at the third restart of the afternoon, which forced an unstable entry back onto the track. Esteban looked to capitalise on a strong exit from Turn 1 and was unfortunate to make contact with the rear of Pierre’s car as both drivers picked up speed on the exit of Turn 2. The collision between both cars forced both drivers out of the race.

Until then, Pierre changed tyres from Soft to Hard under the first red flag on lap seven for Alex Albon’s Williams, aiming to go to the end of the race. At the same time, Esteban pitted on lap two for Hards, under the Safety Car for Charles Leclerc’s stranded Ferrari, with the same objective.

Esteban Ocon:

It’s a real shame for both cars not to finish today’s race, especially after showing great pace all weekend. We had the performance to fight the Ferraris and the Aston Martins, so to walk away with nothing was tough for all of us. The restart at the end was very chaotic, and everything went so fast. The clash with Pierre was unfortunate, and I’m glad we’re both OK. We’ve spoken about it; we’re all good and have no hard feelings. We’re both already looking forward to the next one, and I know the whole team will want to put this weekend behind us.

Pierre Gasly:

I’m very disappointed in the outcome of today’s race. We were in fifth place for most of it, chasing Carlos [Sainz] for fourth place and showed a really good race pace. For us to be so close to scoring ten points and leaving without any is a bitter one for us to take. Right now, we must focus on the positives; that is how we managed our race and how we took the fight to our rivals ahead. I’m glad both Esteban and I are OK after the incident. We’ll move on as a team and keep focused for the next race.

Otmar Szafnauer, Team Principal

While it’s disappointing to leave here with zero points, we can be satisfied and positive with the performance of our car today. We showed we could race with our close rivals ahead and close cars down, and be clinical when it counts. Pierre drove very well today, running much of the race in fifth place and in the fight for a podium alongside the Mercedes, Aston Martin and Ferrari. We must take the positives of this and use it as motivation going forwards. Esteban was certainly unfortunate with the sequence of events early in the race, but he did a good job of climbing his way back into the points with some well-judged overtaking moves. It was unfortunate to have both our cars come together at the third standing start, and I’m glad both drivers are OK, given the nature of the incident. We’ll keep moving forwards, and these hard moments are what brings the team closer together. We’re already looking forward to Baku, where an upgrade is planned.

Alpine F1 Team best pictures:

Pierre Gasly (FRA) Alpine F1 Team A523. Australian Grand Prix, Friday 31st March 2023. Albert Park, Melbourne, Australia.

Esteban Ocon (FRA) Alpine F1 Team A523. Australian Grand Prix, Saturday 1st April 2023. Albert Park, Melbourne, Australia.

Pierre Gasly (FRA) Alpine F1 Team A523. Australian Grand Prix, Saturday 1st April 2023. Albert Park, Melbourne, Australia.

Esteban Ocon (FRA) Alpine F1 Team A523. Australian Grand Prix, Sunday 2nd April 2023. Albert Park, Melbourne, Australia.

Pierre Gasly (FRA) Alpine F1 Team on the drivers’ parade. Australian Grand Prix, Sunday 2nd April 2023. Albert Park, Melbourne, Australia.

(L to R): Otmar Szafnauer (USA) Alpine F1 Team, Team Principal; Ciaron Pilbeam (GBR) Alpine F1 Team Chief Race Engineer; and Alan Permane (GBR) Alpine F1 Team Trackside Operations Director on the grid. Australian Grand Prix, Sunday 2nd April 2023. Albert Park, Melbourne, Australia.

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