Breaking:Colapinto Hit with Grid Penalty at Imola After Qualifying Misunderstanding…read more
Colapinto Hit with Grid Penalty at Imola After Qualifying Misunderstanding
Franco Colapinto’s return to the Formula 1 grid has been marred by a minor but significant setback. The FIA has confirmed a one-place grid penalty for the Alpine F1 Team driver following a qualifying incident during the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix weekend at Imola 2025.
Colapinto, recently promoted to a full-time F1 driver role, replaced Jack Doohan after the Miami Grand Prix. This weekend’s race at Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari was a key moment for the Argentine talent. However, during Q1 qualifying, Colapinto made a crucial error that led to a breach of race protocol.
The session was halted after a crash involving Yuki Tsunoda, triggering a red flag. While teams waited for the official signal to resume, Colapinto misunderstood his engineer’s instruction and entered the pit lane fast lane before the restart time had been authorized — a clear violation of the F1 race director’s event notes.
After the incident, both Colapinto and an Alpine representative were summoned by the F1 stewards. The FIA confirmed the driver had broken Article 12.2.1 i) of the International Sporting Code.
In their official ruling, the FIA stated:
“The team representative explained that he instructed the driver to creep forward but not exit fully. The driver misunderstood, entering the fast lane prematurely. It was too late to reverse the action, and the team instructed him to proceed.”
Alpine argued that the incident did not result in any sporting advantage, as there was enough time remaining in Q1 for all drivers to complete their runs. Despite this, the stewards decided a sporting penalty was necessary.
“The stewards considered the breach to be inadvertent,” the statement continued, “but it did require a penalty. Given the lack of advantage gained, we opted for a one-place grid drop.”
Both the driver and team expressed regret, acknowledging the misunderstanding and apologizing for the oversight. While the penalty is minimal, it emphasizes the importance of strict compliance with F1 regulations, especially under red flag conditions.
The decision also sends a clear message that similar missteps in different circumstances could incur harsher consequences. For Franco Colapinto, this serves as a tough early lesson in his F1 career. Despite the penalty, fans and analysts remain eager to see how he performs in Sunday’s Imola Grand Prix.
As the tension builds for race day at Imola, Colapinto will be looking to put this behind him and prove his worth as one of F1’s rising stars. Stay tuned as the F1 2025 season continues to deliver drama on and off the track.
