Gasly aiming for podium repeat with AlphaTauri in 2020, as team target P5

Ever since he took his maiden F1 podium with Toro Rosso at the 2019 Brazilian Grand Prix, Pierre Gasly has made no bones about the fact that the race at Interlagos was the best of his life. And after helping to launch the re-branded AlphaTauri squad in Austria, Gasly was already targeting a return to the rostrum with his ‘new’ team in 2020.

Gasly appeared at Red Bull’s extravagant Hangar-7 complex in Salzburg, to kick off AlphaTauri’s 2020 campaign, with he and team mate Daniil Kvyat – who also scored a podium in Germany for the squad last year – decked out in white and dark blue overalls, as the livery that will adorn the new AlphaTauri AT01 was shown off.

READ MORE: AlphaTauri reveal striking 2020 livery after Toro Rosso rebrand

“It’s just an amazing adventure with Toro Rosso,” said Gasly, when asked by ceremony host David Coulthard about his time with the team. “The last two years have been pretty good. For sure the podium in Brazil last year was the best race I’ve had in my career, but of course the target is to repeat this kind of performance as many times as possible, and we’ll try to do it this year again.”

Also speaking at the launch, AlphaTauri Team Principal Franz Tost outlined a punchy goal for his team in 2020, after they enjoyed their joint-best ever constructors’ finish of sixth in 2019.

“We must be within the first five of the constructors’ championship,” said Tost decisively. “I’m really convinced that AlphaTauri will have a successful season.

“Why? Because first of all, the car showed very good results in the wind tunnel. Second, Honda, our friends in Japan, Sakura, made big progress during the winter months from the performance side as well as the reliability side.

WATCH: New-look AlphaTauri reveal their 2020 F1 colours

“Third, we have two good drivers. They showed that already last year. We just missed the middle of the podium, so [to the drivers] that means that you know what you have to do!”

From Salzburg, Kvyat and Gasly were set to travel to the Misano circuit in Italy, where they will sample the AlphaTauri AT01 for the first time during a filming day on February 15, ahead of the start of pre-season testing at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya on February 19.