From Chess to Battle for Pole: Gasly Has Russell Covered at Monza

MONZA, Italy – The chessboard isn't the only place Pierre Gasly has George Russell's number. Fifteen minutes before qualifying for the Italian Grand Prix, the two were locked in an online chess match. Gasly won. Then he went out and did it again on track, securing the first pole position of his Formula 1 career and leaving Russell to settle for second .

A Rivalry That Started on a Chessboard

Gasly's performance coach Ben Thorne was watching the chess match unfold. "For a fun story," Gasly recounted, "Ben told me, 'OK, well, you're getting George here, but he's going to get you in a few minutes.'" Gasly said he responded with a swear word — but he was smiling .

Turned out that it worked out well. So yeah, it's been fun.

Russell was laughing about it afterward. "He beat me there," the Briton said, "and I thought, 'Well, I think I'll beat you in qualifying,' and here we are, he's ahead of me again" .

"Firstly, massive congrats to Pierre because that's an incredible performance," Russell said. "We were actually finishing a game of chess about 15 minutes before Qualifying and he beat me there, but I thought 'well I'll beat you on Qualifying' and here we are!" 

The Pole Lap That Stunned Formula 1

Gasly's final qualifying lap of 1:21.786 edged Russell's Mercedes by just 0.060 seconds . The Frenchman had been third behind Russell and Oscar Piastri after the opening Q3 runs, but he saved his best for last .

"It was amazing," Gasly said afterward. "From the first lap in Q1, I felt very good in the car. I was trying to chip a little bit away every single session and then in the end [in Q3], it felt like a very good lap. I'm so happy. It's been nine years trying to chase and get the opportunity to take pole position" .

The pole is especially sweet for Gasly because Monza is where he claimed his only Formula 1 victory — back in 2020 with AlphaTauri . "I won my first race in Monza, and to get my first pole position on this track… I think is something special around here," he said .

"It exceeded all our expectations," Gasly said of Alpine's performance. "Straight from Q1, we were a bit surprised to see us up there. Our target was Q3. But then I was P1 in Q1, then P4 in Q2. I didn't want to get too excited but then first run in Q3, I was third again. And then I felt, 'OK, well, I really have a shot at it'" .

Why Alpine Was So Fast

The Alpine has strong straight-line speed with a low-downforce aerodynamic design tailored to Monza's high-speed layout . The car now features a Mercedes engine — the best in the field — after Renault abandoned its F1 engine program . An upgrade at the last race in the Netherlands further lifted performance .

While Alpine has labored in the midfield through most of Gasly's tenure, Saturday's result validated the team's decision to switch off development on their 2025 car to focus on the new regulations .

The Grid: What to Watch

*Antonelli has a 30-place grid penalty and will start from the back .

A Career of Ups and Downs

Gasly's path to this moment has been anything but smooth. A Red Bull protégé, his time with the works team in 2019 lasted only half a season before he was demoted back to Toro Rosso, crushed by Max Verstappen's dominance . He spent three more years with Red Bull's junior team before moving to Alpine in 2023, hoping a factory team would be his making .

"I'm so happy. It's been nine years trying to chase and get the opportunity to take pole position," Gasly said .

His victory in 2020 at Monza owed much to luck. This pole was different: he absolutely earned it on merit .

The Bottom Line