Motor racing-Gasly makes his move to keep Russell in check on and off the track
05/09/2026 18:47
* Gasly takes first career F1 pole
* Russell alongside, Ferrari pair behind
* Alpine driver also beat Russell at chess
By Alan Baldwin
MONZA, Italy, Sept 5 (Reuters) - Chess fanatic Pierre
Gasly outmanoeuvred George Russell on and off the racetrack on
Saturday as the Frenchman caused one of the biggest upsets of
the Formula One season by bagging a career-first pole position
at the Italian Grand Prix.
The Alpine driver beat Russell at chess before qualifying
started and then produced a killer move on track at Monza with
his final flying lap.
Gasly's gambit for Sunday's race remains to be seen, with
Russell fastest in practice and hungry for a victory to narrow
the 59-point gap to his Mercedes teammate Kimi Antonelli in the
championship battle, but he has already exceeded expectations.
The Frenchman's only previous win was also at Monza and
against the odds, in 2020 with minnows AlphaTauri (now Racing
Bulls), but the trend at least is in his favour.
CHESS GAME ENDED 15 MINUTES BEFORE TRACK ACTION
"We were actually finishing a game of chess about 15 minutes
before qualifying and he beat me there, and I thought, “Well, I
think I’ll beat you in qualifying,” and here we are, he’s ahead
of me again," said Russell, who qualified alongside on the front
row with the Ferraris of Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton
right behind.
Gasly explained some of the background.
"Since the (drivers') briefing last night, I figured out
that he’s obsessed with chess. I am obsessed with chess. We have
a few in the paddock, a few drivers, obsessed with it," he told
reporters.
"So, we’ve just exchanged our ID on Chess.com and we’ve had
a little game going on. One yesterday, another one that carried
on to today. And I must say, before the quali, I felt pretty
confident because I was picking piece after piece."
The Frenchman said his performance coach then told him
"You’re getting George here, but he’s going to get you in a few
minutes.”
"Turned out that it worked out well... I think we are very
competitive and, whether it’s on the track or off the track, we
do need to find our little battles everywhere we can."
Sunday will be a big one, with Gasly and Russell both having
the same Mercedes engine at their disposal but the latter's car
far more competitive so far this season. Mercedes are well clear
at the top of the standings, Renault-owned Alpine sixth overall.
"I’m in the best position, right? I’m starting first, got
no-one ahead of me," said Gasly.
"It’s going to be a long race... we seem to have picked up
more pace from yesterday to today. So, you know, we’ll obviously
give our best shot and see what we can get out of it.
"My plan is to stay first as long as I can. How long is that
going to be? I have no idea."
Gasly's weekend started with disappointment and anger after
an appeal court ruled against Alpine and stripped the Frenchman
of third place in Monaco last June.
"All I can say is it’s not a nice situation, not ideal.
Obviously, I try to use everything I can into something positive
and, you know, extra motivation, but I think I could have dealt
without it this weekend," he said.
(Reporting by Alan Baldwin; editing by Clare Fallon)
((Email: alan.baldwin@thomsonreuters.com))