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Gasly hopes Honda upgrade will help in Sauber battle

Gasly hopes Honda upgrade will help in Sauber battle

08-11-2018 18:27
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Bobby Vincent

Toro Rosso driver Pierre Gasly believes Honda's new upgrade to their engine could be integral to whoever comes out on top in "expensive" battle with midfield rivals Sauber.

Toro Rosso are set to return to the Honda spec-three power unit in Brazil this weekend, following their decision not to run the Honda upgrade in Mexico due to the altitude levels.

Gasly was at the back-of-the-grid in Mexico, but it didn't stop him finishing in an impressive 10th place, but Sauber managed to leapfrog Toro Rosso in the constructors' standings after its second double points finish of the season.

The French driver is fearful that Sauber may have too much for Toro Rosso to come back in the standings with only two rounds left on the Formula One calendar.

"I think there are a lot of positives out of the weekend," Gasly said to Crash.net. "I should not take any penalty, which is going to be really good because the last few races have been tough.

"Always starting from the back of the grid put us in a difficult situation to score points, and now we come to two crucial races for us, with a team, for eighth place, fighting with Sauber.

"There are only three points, but three expensive points ahead of next year which will have an impact on the development of the car for next year, so really need to maximise our chances and that's what we're doing at the moment.

"A new spec, we have the aero upgrade on the car as well, so we should be in a pretty good position to try and defend ourselves in the best way possible."