Pierre Gasly's move from AlphaTauri to Alpine equates to a promotion of sorts for the Frenchman, but one that he's approaching with a very different mindset than his switch to Red Bull in 2019.
Back then, the 22-year-old Gasly was deemed worthy by Red Bull's top brass of replacing Daniel Ricciardo as Max Verstappen's teammate at the Milton Keynes-based outfit.
Alas, the Frenchman struggled from the outset to perform on a par with the Dutchman.
Just twelve races into the 2019 season, a hard-line Helmut Marko demoted Gasly back to Toro Rosso, while rookie Alex Albon was handed the plum seat at RBR.
Now, Gasly has once again left the Red Bull sister outfit for a more competitive team, but one outside of the energy drink company's F1 family.
Furthermore, the 2020 Italian Grand Prix winner is approaching his new endeavor as a very different driver than the one he was four years ago.
"It feels like it was an eternity ago that I was with Red Bull, and since then, so much has happened, professionally and personally," Gasly said.
"I really feel like I've developed in all areas. I remember when I came in Red Bull, the feeling that I had going there, and now the feeling, my approach and mindset that I have going into Alpine, is completely different.
"I have a lot clearer ideas. I think it's more like clarity in my mind on what's needed to perform, and what's needed to be competitive.
"[I want to] mainly use that experience that I've gathered with AlphaTauri, in good and bad times, and gathered the experience that I learned in Red Bull to make the best out of this opportunity with Alpine.
"I'm a lot more confident that this is going to be very successful, I have no doubt about it. 2019, even if you think it's only three years ago, I think personally I've evolved a lot."
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A day of running with his new team in Abu Dhabi last November and three days of pre-season testing in Bahrain will be all Gasly will have under his belt when the 2023 F1 season kicks off in early March.
But the Alpine charger says he's a fast adapter, although he's keeping an "open mind" when it comes to his expectations.
"For sure, it's not going to give a lot of time before the season starts, but I'll do all the prep that is needed and at the end of the day, I know I can adapt quickly," said Gasly.
"I've done it in the past. I just need to be aware that things might be very different. It might not be. It might feel quite natural straight away. It might not feel natural straightaway.
"But it's very important to come with an open mind."
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