Alpine Executive Advisor Flavio Briatore has conceded that, in hindsight, Franco Colapinto’s Formula 1 promotion may have been premature.
Colapinto’s stellar nine-race cameo for Williams last season was enough to convince Alpine to tie him down to the team with a reserve driver role for 2025.
But with Jack Doohan struggling to get to grips with the A525, a decision was made to replace the rookie with the Argentine racing driver from Imola onwards.
Eight races into his Alpine career, however, Colapinto has failed to reignite the form that earned him his promotion in the first place.
The 22-year-old currently sits 20th in the standings – yet to score a point for the Enstone-based squad, like his predecessor.
Colapinto has admitted that he has struggled to adapt to Alpine’s car, a problem he did not face with the FW46.
But Briatore believes that the persisting issues impeding his progress are more deeply rooted than just a tricky car.
“We changed Doohan with Franco and maybe he has the same problem of too much pressure to be in Formula 1,” Briatore told media including Motorsport Week at Zandvoort.
“Maybe we put [too] much pressure on him. We need to consider sometimes that the driver is a human being and we need to sometimes understand exactly what’s going on in the head of these, because they are young; 19, 20, 22, 23.
The 75-year-old categorised the decision to promote Colapinto alongside Pierre Gasly as a “mistake” on the team’s end.
“It’s our mistake sometimes to underestimate the human part of the driver. We’re looking always for the timing. Maybe I missed something there in the management of the driver,” he added.
Why Colapinto has struggled with Alpine
In the lead-up to Cadillac’s announcement that it had signed up the pair of Valtteri Bottas and Sergio Perez to lead the team in its maiden season next year, rumours were abound that the duo had been contacted by Alpine to replace a misfiring Colapinto.
And while there has been no official confirmation from the team regarding its interest in other drivers, Briatore was candid enough to concede that he has not been impressed by the Argentine so far.
“I think for a driver it’s very difficult to cope with this car,” he continued.
“I’m not happy if you look at the results, that’s what is important. He tried very hard. We tried very hard with the engineering [team] to please him in everything, but really it’s not what I expect from Colapinto.”
On the flip side, Gasly has quickly become a team leader within the squad, according to Briatore – someone he won’t be in a hurry to dispense.
“He’s [Gasly] good. He’s consistent. He’s a team player. I know him very well. We need some base in the team, and Pierre is a base in the team for the future,” he concluded.
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