Briatore slams Colapinto before FP2: "Maybe needed another year" | OneFootball

Although Franco Colapinto’s start at the Dutch Grand Prix was very good, the statements made by Flavio Briatore, head of Alpine, surprised both insiders and outsiders, especially due to the harshness of his words. While the Italian admitted that perhaps they put too much pressure on the Argentine driver, he also made it clear that he is not satisfied with his performances so far.

“We swapped (Jack) Doohan for Franco and maybe he has the same problem of too much pressure from being in Formula 1. Maybe we put too much pressure on him. Sometimes we need to remember that the driver is a human being and we have to really understand what’s going through these kids’ heads,” the Italian analyzed during a press conference alongside James Vowles (Williams) and Toto Wolff (Mercedes). He even seemed to align himself with Colapinto’s main criticism of the car: “I think for a driver it’s very difficult to deal with this car.”

Up to that point, Il Padrino’s words seemed mild. However, when delving deeper into the issue, he made it clear that he is not satisfied with the level shown by the driver from Pilar so far: “Maybe it wasn’t the right time to have him in F1, maybe he needed another year. I’m not happy if you look at the results, and that’s what matters. He tries very hard. We try very hard with the engineering team to please him in every way, but it’s really not what I expect from Colapinto.”

Briatore is known for being demanding, but until now he had never been so blunt regarding Colapinto’s level—a driver he strongly backed at the start of the season when he brought him over from Williams. Nevertheless, it’s also true that the Italian shows a certain mea culpa, but seems to place much of the responsibility on the driver and not on the mistakes and constant internal fluctuations that Alpine faces as a team. Thus, the executive said little about the constant changes within the team’s structure, the internal power struggles at the start of the season, the poor performance of the car—which even affects Pierre Gasly, his other driver—and even the mistakes in pit stops and car setup.

Vowles, Colapinto’s former boss at Williams, listened attentively to the Italian’s words and came to the Argentine’s defense, a driver for whom he has always expressed great personal regard. The Briton then explained his perspective and compared it to Colapinto’s time at Williams, when the pressures were not the same.

“When the pressure isn’t there, you can get much more out of the driver, because he’s not worried about an immediate performance that has an impact. A good example was the first time I put Franco in at Silverstone (FP2 in 2024). He thought it was his only chance to be there and my message beforehand was: ‘It has nothing to do with lap times, it’s about relaxing and enjoying the moment because it might not happen again.’ And he gave an outstanding performance,” he stated.

Similarly, Vowles pointed out that the competition today is much tougher, stating that “three tenths separate the entire grid” and that “a small mistake” puts you last.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇪🇸 here.