'I thought we would end up in the harbour' - Gasly on Vettel F1 Monaco GP battle
Pierre Gasly says he and Sebastian Vettel could have ended up in the harbour during their "very close" battle for fifth place at Formula 1's Monaco Grand Prix.
Vettel was able to leapfrog Lewis Hamilton and Gasly as Aston Martin pulled off a successful overcut strategy, but the four-time world champion had to complete the pass on the AlphaTauri on track.
The pair ran side-by-side up Beau Rivage after Vettel emerged alongside Gasly coming out of the pits, with the German holding firm on the outside to sneak into fifth.
Gasly, who went on to take his best result of 2021 so far behind Vettel in sixth, said it was "hard" but ultimately fair racing.
"We literally came out side-by-side up the hill and he managed to get on top of us," Gasly told Sky Sports F1.
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"It was very close. I tried first the overtake button to boost everything I had but for some reason it didn't give me the edge on him.
"Going up the hill at some point I thought we would both end up in the harbour because it was that close. He managed to have just half a car in front of us and keep it in front.
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"He didn't give me any room. It was very hard racing, I told him, but we both made it. If I had been in his seat I would have done the same thing, so nicely done from him."
Vettel Gasly
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Vettel acknowledged it was "very tight" to get the move completed while avoiding a collision with Gasly.
"It was very, very tight with Pierre coming out," Vettel explained.
"Up the hill I didn't see him initially. I knew he was there but not exactly where and it was drag race up the hill. It's not straight and I gave him room and eventually he had to back out of it.
"I also didn't have that much room because there is a lot of pick up off line, plus on fresh tyres, you still that silicone top that you need to get rid off, so yeah it was tight but it worked."
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