Franco Colapinto had to deal with a few frustrations in Barcelona, but he shows understanding—at least in hindsight—regarding the team orders
Although he picked up another point, the Formula 1 race in Barcelona was a source of frustration for Franco Colapinto. During the race, he was instructed by his team to let his teammate Pierre Gasly pass; after the Grand Prix, he received a time penalty that cost him positions and points.
At first, the Argentine had no understanding of the team order in particular: “He’s a second or two ahead and I’m not even pushing,” Colapinto tried to persuade his team after being told (“That’s an order”) to give up his position to Gasly. “If I’m supposed to push, I’ll push. At least give me a chance.”
His perspective is understandable; after all, both drivers were on similar strategies. Gasly had put on hard tires that were just two laps fresher than Colapinto’s.
But in hindsight, the Argentine is understanding: “I think it’s always more frustrating for the car in front because you don’t want to lose a position or give up three seconds on an overtaking maneuver,” he explains. “But in the garage, they have a much broader perspective. Of course, I understand the decision.”
Time penalty costs points
In the end, both Alpines crossed the finish line in seventh and eighth place and were set to celebrate ten points—until the stewards intervened after the fact.
When Fernando Alonso pulled his Aston Martin over at Turn 9 on Lap 40 due to a suspected battery issue, Colapinto—according to the stewards—had not slowed down sufficiently under the local yellow flag before a Virtual Safety Car (VSC) period was called.
The stewards determined that while the Argentine had lifted off the throttle, this was not sufficient to comply with the yellow flag, and they imposed a ten-second time penalty on him. As a result, he dropped from eighth to tenth place in the standings—behind the Racing Bulls duo of Liam Lawson and Arvid Lindblad.
Colapinto also received a penalty point on his license—the first ever issued by the stewards this year.
“The stewards note that the driver of car 43 slightly reduced his speed before entering the single-yellow-flag zone but did not make any discernible reduction in speed within the corresponding yellow-flag sector,” the ruling states.
“The stewards acknowledge that the driver reacted to the yellow flag, but do not consider this reaction sufficient to comply with the regulations. Therefore, a penalty at the lower end of the applicable penalty range is imposed.”
Before the penalty was announced, Colapinto had given a positive assessment of the weekend: “It was a very good race, very solid. As a team, we showed that we’re really strong and that we turned a difficult result around. So overall, it was absolutely positive—it was a much stronger race day.”
“With a full tank, we showed that we were better. Of course, we’ll keep working and try to improve for the next few races, since you can see that the car doesn’t feel optimal and we still have a lot of things to improve and understand.”