San Pablo: How do we judge this race? Franco Colapinto At the San Pablo Grand Prix? Because of its result? He started 16th, after qualifying 18th, and finished 15th. Nothing exciting. As for the quality of your car? He was injured on Saturday due to a crash in a speed race, weak compared to his teammate Pierre Gasly Which was sound, couldn’t offer the same. Or do we do it because of the quality of his handling, influenced by two sets of tires that neither his car nor Gasly’s car gave the expected result?
After the joy of being confirmed as the starting driver for 2026 in the Alps, the blow came that destroyed his car in Saturday’s short race, effectively eliminating any hope of the weekend.
The clear advance that had been expected here was cut short on Franco’s Sunday He ran as best he could and achievedBut he himself, in front of the group of written press, sneered, showed his displeasure, and began asking himself questions similar to those posed at the beginning of this text.
What’s the positive thing about this weekend?
“I think the audience and the fans that were there, okay.” Completely judge the outcome with a hint of a wry smile. And released:
“It wasn’t a good weekend, and obviously I’m not very happy. Long race, without much speed. It was bad, we had no control, and I think that complicated the race. We followed a similar strategy to everyone in front of us. We didn’t do anything different, and I think that also led us to be in the same situation as always.”
The winner of the race is the Englishman Lando NorrisMcLaren took a giant step towards winning the 2025 competition because his main rival and teammate Oscar Piastri finished fifth, but not before receiving a 10-second penalty for causing a collision with Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes), who was in second place. From the pit lane, Max Verstappen accomplished another of his feats: making three pit stops, avoiding collisions at the start and restart and finishing third with a Red Bull that they finally “found the way to”.
Lots of atmosphere in Interlagos
The day started with the usual expectations and local colour.
Grand Prix on Sunday in Interlagos. There was already chaos arriving on Saturday, but today, Sunday, there was chaos, even from 8am. At least 1,000 buses blocked access to the circuit. Thousands of excited Argentines got out of their cars two kilometers from the entry gates. It was raining. Opportunists were on those side streets because there was a good market: they ripped off the thin layers of protective nylon. There were bargains. Team jerseys and hats are sold identical to the official jerseys, but the “trout” is authentic.
Light rain was expected until midday, but no rain would fall at race time. Likewise, the constant breeze was quickly drying the circuit.
Since early morning, the very narrow Circuit Street was crowded with dignitaries, journalists and some “co-workers”. The stall of premium quality tropical fruits, which were offered to attendees, was no longer able to handle. Favorite item: A huge, helmet-sized green coconut, pierced to sip the sweet nectar it contains. This is Formula 1 today, a basket full of fun and sometimes bizarre experiences.
At 9:40 on Sunday, Franco sat down to breakfast at a four-person table near the impassable access door (for non-guests) to Alpine Hospitality. The vigilant bodyguard was wearing an impeccable dark suit, stood 1.8 meters tall and had an intimidating effect, meant to block the view of the VIPs who were most curious about the place.
Franco was accompanied by his mother, sister and managers Maria, Jimmy Campbell and Walter. There was a moment when his engineer, Stuart Barlow, approached him and spoke in his ear. Confidentiality was emphasized regarding technical details in the final preparation of the car, which, due to the regulatory restrictions of the “closed park” system, could not exceed the regulation of aerodynamics.
While Red Bull decided to break the ‘Parc Fermé’ to change the setup of Verstappen’s car, accepting him to start from the pit lane, Alpine ruled out that idea for Franco. “It’s not worth it, because the components we can install will not represent any improvement, they are used and not the best,” those close to the team said, while the technicians were explaining their decision.
Barlo informed the Argentine that he would move up another position on the grid because, in addition to Max Verstappen, it was Esteban Ocon (Haas), who qualified 17th on Saturday, who would start from pit road.
After several hours of qualifying, measurements and radio equipment from several teams could be reviewed, and more details emerged about the three incidents that occurred on the sixth lap of the Sprint race in which Colapinto participated. It turns out that Verstappen also stepped on that piano and managed to contain the injury. Piastri agreed with Colapinto, saying he had also traveled there without problems. Until the moment of the accident.
Survive the chaos
After the usual festivities, we had to think about racing. At one point it was thought possible to stop once and surprise the rivals, Pierre Gasly and Oliver Piermann (Haas), Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls), and Franco, Lance Stroll’s Aston Martin who started from 14th position. It was impossible for Colapinto’s No. 43 car to withstand the attacks of Max Verstappen (Red Bull) and Esteban Ocon (Haas). The two, having given up their starting positions of 16th and 17th respectively, changed engines and settings, and agreed to start from the pit lane. They had a lot to gain this way.
Colapinto moved up one position on the first lap because Carlos Sainz ran Lewis Hamilton off the track, ruining the race for the Ferrari driver.
Franco was lucky because while trying to make up for lost ground, Hamilton hit him from behind, destroying the Ferrari’s front wing, but without affecting the Argentine. In that same round, with the cars closing spaces too much, Gabriel Bortoletto collided with Lance Stroll and was disqualified.
It took four laps for the safety car to remove the remains of the frustrated Brazilian. Restarting from fourth position, Oscar Piastri (McLaren) attempted to overtake Kimi Antonelli on the inside and collided with him. The Italian collided with the Ferrari driven by Charles Leclerc, breaking a wheel and suspension and abandoning it.
Franco also survived the chaos, and for the rest of the race he was locked in long battles with Lance Stroll, Yuki Tsunoda and Fernando Alonso, pole cars that tend to be very fast. I can handle their pace. Franco extended the duration of the middle boot into the 29th round and was briefly able to convert into the eighth. Those tires should have lasted longer to hopefully stop.
The same thing happened to all teams that switched to the double stop strategy. The soft rubber toy didn’t improve his condition either. He stopped for the second time in the 43rd round. Two periods later he scored 1 minute, 12 seconds and 16/100. It would have been the fifth best absolute time of the race. And so he held out until the end, as he was able to withstand Lance Stroll’s attacks with a much smaller shoe, but he could not prevent Alonso from overtaking him.
Franco added to his comments at the end of the race:
“We could have tried something more serious (stopping) and see what happened, but the car didn’t deteriorate well (tire wear) either. It was a tough day, nothing, we have to review things, all weekend at the factory.”
There will be little time to draw conclusions, and the next Grand Prix will be on Las Vegas Boulevard, a venue that doesn’t quite fit the Alpine’s characteristics.
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