The silly season takes yet another turn before the next season begins. This time, it’s French driver Pierre Gasly joining the French team Alpine. The Frenchman will drive alongside countryman Esteban Ocon from 2023 onwards as he signs a multi-year deal with the new team.

Gasly announced his decision to leave AlphaTauri and the Red Bull family in a statement ahead of the Japanese GP. “I am delighted to join the Alpine family and begin this new chapter in my Formula 1 career,” said Gasly. “Driving for a team that has French roots is something very special.”

Talking about roots, the news comes ahead of the home race of his Japanese teammate Yuki Tsunoda. Gasly is joining a team with a lot of French influence. However, Gasly is still sad to be leaving his Japanese friend behind with whom he’s formed an unbreakable bond.

When asked about how he feels leaving Tsunoda behind, Gasly gave a heartfelt and honest reply.

“He feels like a little brother and over the past two years, we’ve lived a lot of good moments together. I’ve seen him developing himself, improving himself a lot. It’s not going to be easy for sure. — Definitely going to miss Yuki. Definitely going to miss his no-filter behavior,” replied Gasly.

Read More: Amid Career Crossroads, Pierre Gasly Finds F1 Stability With This Team

Every driver needs to be selfish and put themselves first. However, Gasly is leaving a door open for his relationship with Tsunoda despite the move.

Pierre Gasly admits he is trying to keep Yuki Tsunoda close despite his move to Alpine

Gasly admitted he will miss his teammate. However, he is not calling it quits with Tsunoda and is counting on maintaining his relationship with a little effort.

In the same interview, Gasly revealed, “I’m sure we’ll have time off track. I’m trying to get him closer to Milan so we can live not to far from each other.”

The ending of this partnership, however, is leaving fans feeling a certain way.

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Tweets of “child of divorce” flood Twitter as the fans mourn the separation of the AlphaTauri pair.