Every year, when Formula 1 heads to Spa-Francorchamps, a looming sense of dread and tragedy takes over the paddock for a while. But every year, without fail, Pierre Gasly manages to lift everyone’s spirits by doing what he can to honor his late best friend, Anthoine Hubert. In 2019, Hubert—22 at the time—was involved in a fatal accident on the iconic Raidillon corner during the F2 Feature Race at the Belgian GP. To keep Hubert’s legacy alive, every year during the Belgian GP weekend, Gasly lays flowers down at the site of Hubert’s accident, and this year was no different.

To honor Hubert—and the 18-year-old Dutchman Dilano van ‘t Hoff, who passed away recently in an eerily similar fashion to Hubert—Gasly organized a run for all F1, F2, and F3 personnel. During the run—as always—he laid a bouquet with a special promise on it, one he fulfilled that weekend.

Pierre Gasly will forever be “Racing for Anthoine”

Shortly before Hubert’s death, Gasly wasn’t having the best moments in his F1 career. He had just been demoted from Red Bull to Toro Rosso (now AlphaTauri). To motivate him, Hubert sent Gasly a message, saying, “Prove them wrong.” Referring to this message, Gasly put a note in his bouquet that read, “I’ll prove them wrong.” Later that week, the Frenchman—in a shock result and against all odds—finished third for Alpine during the Sprint race, keeping true to his promise. 

Today, on the 31st of August—the fourth death anniversary of Hubert—he paid homage to his dear friend once again. In 2019, Hubert received full backing from the Renault Sport Academy and was tipped to drive for the F1 team (now Alpine) in the future. To remember him on this day, Alpine’s official Instagram handle posted pictures of the Frenchman and wrote, “The 31st of August will always be the day we remember Anthoine. While it’s been four years since that tragic day, we continue to race with him firmly in our hearts. We miss you, buddy 💙 #Racingfor Anthoine” Gasly’s official news and merchandise Instagram page, Team Gasly, reposted Alpine’s post on its story, writing “💙💙” 

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Emotional Pierre Gasly Finds Unexpected Bond With Deceased Friend While Hailing F1 Sportsmanship

It’s evident how much Anthoine Hubert meant to Gasly. The two practically grew up together, sticking with each other in the cutthroat world of motorsport. So when Hubert tragically passed, it affected Gasly more than any other driver, so much so that he still finds it difficult to talk about the 31st of August 2019. But whenever he gets the opportunity, he never misses a beat to pay respect to Hubert, just as he did after the Spa Sprint race.

Gasly dedicated his Spa result to Anthoine Hubert

Gasly hasn’t had the best of seasons. After switching from AlphaTauri to Alpine this season, it’s taken the Frenchman some adjusting to get used to his car. Whether it was the venue that played a role or his promise to Hubert, Gasly seemed to have found his groove during the shortened Sprint race during the Belgian GP weekend. In the challenging interchangeable conditions during the Sprint, he kept his head down and brought the car home in P3.

In the post-Sprint interview, he said, “It does feel very special to do it here at Spa. Obviously, a thought for Anthoine (Hubert). I’m just extremely pleased for the whole team because it hasn’t been the smoothest start of the year, but we managed to put it together here today.”

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On this day, as Pierre Gasly, Alpine, and the entire motorsport world remember Anthoine Hubert, what do you remember him for?