Franco Colapinto has revealed the damage to his Alpine following his intense duel with Esteban Ocon at the Formula 1 Chinese Grand Prix.
Colapinto enjoyed a competitive start of the race in Shanghai running within the top ten, with the A526 enjoying a positive turn of pace.
Alpine were locked in a spirited battle with Haas during the race, as the prospect of points were on the table for the Argentine since the 2024 United States GP.
The duel peaked after Colapinto his stop for hard tyres, where Ocon sensed an opportunity to pass him, only to collide with the Alpine and punt him into a spin.
Rejoining the circuit, Colapinto started a comeback drive to secure the final point in 10th, but was left ruing a missed opportunity for a larger points haul.
It is frustrating, it was a very good start on the hard tyres, and I was in a really good position on the hard tyres and going long”, he said to media, including Motorsport Week.
Franco Colapinto recalls “nice fight” with Ocon
Recalling the incident, Colapinto detailed the level of damage to his A526, revealing the scale of the challenge he faced to secure 10th at the chequered flag.”We stopped three laps after Esteban. I came out in front, and he hit me on the right rear.”
“I had a big hole on the floor, which was not great for performance, but he came and said sorry, so it is all good.”
Ocon immediatley took responsibility for the incident, and was awarded a 10-second time penalty for the incident, which Colapinto revealed the Frenchman apologised for.
“We had a nice fight with each other during the race, it was really close, but at the end, it didn’t finish well, but he apologised, and it is all fine.”
Teammate Pierre Gasly secured sixth in Shanghai leading to the first double points haul for Alpine since Brazil in 2024, where it scored a double podium.
Despite Colapinto’s adventurous race, it is one of the first signs of a much expected and needed turnaround for a team that remains under scrutiny for underperformance.
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