New Honda unit a significant step forward - Gasly

Pierre Gasly enjoyed a solid charge through the field on Sunday in Montreal that ended just outside the top ten, and the Toro Rosso driver believes his new-spec Honda engine was a big contributor to his progress.

A technical issue with the Japanese manufacturer's latest upgraded power unit had forced Gasly to revert to the old-spec engine for Saturday's qualifying session which he ended P16.

However, overnight analysis by Honda's engineers concluded that the most recent engine was actually good to go, but the subsequent change also meant a 10-spot grid penalty.

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Gasly was on a tear from the outset, putting in a flawless drive to end his afternoon eleventh. Asked if he would have done any better with the older engine, the Frenchman doesn't think that would have been the case.

"No, we would’ve finished, looking at the race, behind Perez I think, so we would’ve been 14th," he told Autosport.

"It was the right choice, because with the other one [it] would’ve not been possible to come back even from P16.

"In the end it was the right decision, even if we started a bit further [back].

"I overtook a Haas, I overtook a Force India on the straight, which is the first time this year. For me [the new engine] is looking good. Promising."

From the internal combustion engine to its hybrid elements, Gasly said the new unit was simply better overall compared to its previous specification.

"Everything. Just more performance in general," he said.

"In terms of battery as well, in terms of energy management is better. It’s a really good step.

"They told us ‘We are working for an upgrade, which will be a decent upgrade, something that will make a real difference’.

"And clearly on the data we can see that it’s a really good step forward."