Gasly crash overshadows encouraging Alpine Friday
Pierre Gasly suffered a heavy crash at the end of second practice for the Belgian Grand Prix after a snap of oversteer at the Les Fagnes section sent him into the barriers. The Frenchman lost control at Turn 14, clipped the outside wall, spun and struck the barrier again, bringing his session to a premature end.
Managing director Steve Nielsen described the incident as a small mistake that would have been harmless at many circuits but proved costly on Spa’s unforgiving layout. Gasly confirmed the car suffered a huge snap that took too long to recover from, leaving him unable to regain the track before impact.
Despite the setback, Alpine enjoyed their most competitive Friday in recent memory as Franco Colapinto set the seventh fastest time in FP2. The Argentine outpaced the Racing Bulls of Arvid Lindblad by 0.147 seconds, marking the first time in three grands prix the team has shown genuine midfield pace.
Colapinto attributed the improvement to cooler conditions and the circuit’s lower-speed corners suiting the car’s characteristics, while Gasly highlighted a productive day of testing that included a new halo specification. Both drivers completed extensive evaluation programmes across the two sessions.
Team wary of overnight setup risks
Nielsen warned that the team must resist the temptation to chase further gains overnight, noting the car showed genuine pace in FP2 after a heavily experimental first session. The priority now is consolidating the current baseline rather than risking regression before qualifying.