GAME RECOGNISES GAME

It's almost impossible to catch a Formula 1 driver. But we sat down with the athlete as he discusses his relationship with time and his latest project: the Streamliner Tourbillon Pierre Gasly with H. Moser & Cie.

- FARHAN SHAH

THE TYRES WERE WORN DOWN to their last thread with the car slipping and sliding at every corner. And with every lap, Carlos Sainz and his McLaren was gaining tenths of a second—and almost at his tail. But Formula 1 driver Pierre Gasly gritted his teeth, gripped his steering wheel, and powered his car to the Monza finish line. Finally, after a lifetime of toil, Gasly had fulfilled his lifelong dream of winning a Grand Prix race.

Five years on, after that momentous victory, Gasly is sitting in front of me recalling the final moments of the 2020 Italian Grand Prix. There is an iconic picture of Gasly sitting on the podium, his left hand pressed against his forehead while his celebratory Moet & Chandon champagne and trophy sit beside him. His eyes are closed, as though in disbelief at his incredible achievement.

"That victory was a definitive moment in my career for me," says Gasly. “But this moment now is also something that I would never have imagined could actually happen.”