After a disappointing Bahrain test, fears that the team could have the slowest car in the 2024 field were realised in qualifying, as Pierre Gasly earned 20th and last position, a spot behind his team-mate Esteban Ocon.
The weight of the car became a talking point in testing, with some observers – including former Team Enstone driver and commentator Jolyon Palmer – suggesting that the new car may be as much as 11kg over the limit, with an obvious direct impact on lap time.
However, when asked by Autosport if that was a realistic number, Gasly insisted the situation wasn’t as dire: “It's not as much. It's not as bad as you mentioned. So there is obviously lap time to find a bit everywhere. And looking at the gaps, there is some work to do.
“Everything matters, and what you said, two kilos of lap time equals six hundredths, and six hundredths will make a difference.
“There is some weight to be [lost], there's some performance to come on the chassis, there will be upgrades. It's not the position we want to be in, but we're all on the same boat, and we'll try to get the best out of it every single time.”
Gasly stressed that the team knows where the weaknesses in the package are.
“I think it's very, very clear where we've got to make the improvement,” he said. “Unfortunately, it doesn't come as a surprise to us that we are lacking performance. And then for the time being, we have got to make the best with what we've got.
Source: Autosport