Pierre Gasly gets boost in bid to join Alpine as Red Bull "will not stand in his way"

Pierre Gasly will be free to leave AlphaTauri a year early to join Alpine – as long as Red Bull receive the compensation they have demanded to cancel the Frenchman's contract.

Gasly is currently set to race for AlphaTauri again in 2023, with that news being confirmed earlier in the summer. But things have changed, with Alpine now unexpectedly needing a new driver to partner Esteban Ocon.

At first they wanted to keep Fernando Alonso, and when he said he was leaving for Aston Martin they tried to promote Oscar Piastri. But he too wanted out, and the Aussie has now had his move to midfield rivals McLaren confirmed after a legal battle.

So now they look set to turn to Gasly, despite his less-than-friendly relationship with Ocon. But they believe his talent and the benefits of having an all-French driver lineup at a French team outweigh any potential personal issues between them.

AlphaTauri have said in the past they want to keep Gasly for as long as they can, but appear to have now softened their stance somewhat. Helmut Marko, who oversees driver development at Red Bull, is open to the idea of allowing the 26-year-old to leave.

But they will only do so if Alpine meet their demands, and pay what they believe the last year of his deal is worth to them. "We have a valid contract for 2023, but in the meantime there are talks," Marko told Sky Germany , as quoted by Autosport.

Alpine wanted to promote Oscar Piastri, but he will race for McLaren in 2023 (Getty Images)

"If our conditions are met, we wouldn't stand in Gasly's way. It would be a dream come true for him to drive in a French factory team. But not all the conditions have been met yet."

A move would see AlphaTauri in need of at least one new driver next year, while Yuki Tsunoda's future is also up in the air. IndyCar star Colton Herta has been linked with the Red Bull stable, as has Mick Schumacher after reports he is set to be released from the Ferrari Young Driver Programme.

But Marko was coy about who could replace Gasly, adding: "We've already thought about that, but we don't want to announce that yet. We have some people in the junior squad who have a super licence. For the reserve driver, we would recruit someone from that."