Franco Colapinto was within striking distance of the podium when he made “a big mistake” that sent him far back in the field: Why a better result would have been difficult to achieve anyway
Franco Colapinto has probably never been this close to the top in his career: After the first start of the Italian Grand Prix (race report), the Alpine driver fought his way up from seventh on the grid to fourth place and even had a taste of the podium at the restart when he briefly held third place.
In the first Lesmo corner, however, Colapinto lost control of his Alpine and slid spectacularly through the gravel trap. As a result, the Argentine was dropped all the way back to 16th place. “I had a great opportunity and didn’t take advantage of it, so I’m really very sad about it,” he admits.
“I think it could have been a great race, and that was a big mistake,” Colapinto told ESPN Argentina after the race, with tears in his eyes: “I missed a very important opportunity for the team and for myself, so I’m a little sad about it. It’s hard to learn from this.”
In interviews with other media outlets as well, the Alpine driver expressed his disappointment—even though he was ultimately able to fight his way back to ninth place and thus back into the World Championship points. Teammate Pierre Gasly fared only marginally better, finishing in seventh place.
Franco Colapinto “Just Frustrated” After Driving Error
“I’m just frustrated,” the Argentine says nonetheless. “I think I did some good things. I don’t know, I just completely lost the car in turns five and six—kind of out of nowhere. That’s very frustrating.”
“I think we could have achieved some good results—P2 and P3 together—and you know, you feel so strong and suddenly you’re battling with the top teams. That gets you very motivated very quickly, and a mistake like this throws it all away. I’m just frustrated.”
Even after the race, the Alpine driver can’t really explain the driving error. “I lost control of the car very aggressively, drove through the gravel trap very fast, and sustained a lot of damage,” he sums up. “I thought I’d have to retire.”
Colapinto: “We should have scored more points”
The team did, however, manage to minimize the impact of the damage. “And yes, we managed to score points,” Colapinto says, at least managing to play damage control. A fight for the podium would have been difficult anyway, as teammate Gasly demonstrated.
That did little to ease Colapinto’s frustration, however. “I’m just frustrated that we didn’t make the most of the car and the good things we’ve done together. And I think I need to learn from this for the future.“
”But we don’t get many chances like this to fight up there at the front, and that’s why it’s especially frustrating to have moments like this,“ says the current Alpine driver, who will also be driving for the team in 2027. ”I think we should have scored more points. So: my apologies to the team.”
Alpine driver is pleased: “It was cool to battle with them”
The pass on Max Verstappen shortly after the restart shows that perhaps a bit more than ninth place was possible. “When you’re in the car, you don’t really feel the difference between one driver or another,” Colapinto says, downplaying the situation against the four-time world champion.
“But it was cool to battle with them. That’s exactly what I meant earlier: We don’t usually get to battle side-by-side with the top cars and top teams. And that’s why it’s so painful to just let an opportunity like that slip away.”
“I left four cars from the top teams behind me during the restarts, and that’s exactly why it hurts so much to throw that away,” emphasizes the 23-year-old. “When you’re up there with them and taking more risks at the same time, you don’t even realize that it’s not really your battle.”
“You feel the podium and want to keep going and take risks, and maybe that didn’t make sense,” says Colapinto. “So, once again: learn from this and try to do better next time, if I get another chance like this.”
