F1 star admits 'relief' after being dropped by team

F1 star Pierre Gasly has admitted he felt 'relief' when he was informed he would no longer race alongside Max Verstappen at Red Bull.

Gasly had been fast-tracked up to Red Bull's main F1 team after just a single full season at junior outfit Toro Rosso to replace an outgoing Daniel Ricciardo, the Aussie not content with playing second fiddle to the Dutchman.

The Frenchman made his debut as Verstappen's team-mate at the 2019 season-opening Australian Grand Prix and instantly felt the pressure of racing alongside the squad's star driver.

After two race retirements, Gasly experienced what has now become a famously cursed seat in F1 and was demoted back down to the junior squad after only 12 grand prix weekends.

This move is something Red Bull have since also applied to Liam Lawson's career, and the pair share the fact that they have both managed to find success in their time in F1 after failing to meet the main team's standards.

Gasly thankful for his 'second life' in F1

The now 29-year-old was swapped out for Alex Albon at the 2019 Belgian GP, before the British-Thai driver was also demoted and forced to spend a season on the sidelines in 2021.

Luckily for Gasly, his career was yet to peak, and being demoted by Red Bull was arguably one of the best things to happen to him on his journey to his first grand prix victory.

After getting a taste of success with Toro Rosso in 2019 with a P2 at Interlagos, Gasly returned to the podium to take his first and only F1 win after being axed by Red Bull.

The junior team, who had transitioned into AlphaTauri for the 2020 championship, helped Gasly to pick up an emotional win at Monza, cementing the fact that a move away from the main team was the best outcome for him.

Speaking to Lawrence Barretto for F1's Off the Grid series, Gasly reflected on his mixed emotions upon hearing the news of his Red Bull demotion, saying: "When I got the call to tell me I was going back to Toro Rosso, [it] almost felt like a relief.

"When everybody thought, 'ok, he's not going to manage the fact that he's getting demoted, I almost felt like sort of a second life for me.

"Straight away I knew, ok, I have no doubt that things will work out. You always learn a lot more in difficult times and I think that's also part of the reason of the success that I've had following that Red Bull episode."

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