Briatore Admits Regrets Over Colapinto Promotion as Alpine Future

Briatore Admits Regrets Over Colapinto Promotion as Alpine Future Hangs in the Balance

Alpine team principal Flavio Briatore has admitted that the promotion of Franco Colapinto may have come too soon, with the young Argentine’s Formula 1 future now uncertain after a string of disappointing results.

Colapinto, who impressed in 2024 as a stand-in at Williams for Logan Sargeant, joined Alpine as a reserve driver at the start of the year. Midway through the 2025 season, he was elevated to a full-time race seat alongside Pierre Gasly after Jack Doohan was dropped just six rounds into his rookie campaign. Expectations were high, given Colapinto’s brief but promising F1 outings the year before.

However, since stepping into the Alpine car, the 22-year-old has endured a tough introduction. Across nine Grands Prix he has yet to score a single championship point, leaving Alpine languishing at the very bottom of the constructors’ standings. The lack of progress has led Briatore to openly question whether the timing of Colapinto’s promotion was right.

Speaking during the Dutch Grand Prix weekend, Briatore acknowledged that the management of the driver could have been handled more carefully. “I think I see everything already,” he told reporters. “I don’t need to see anything more. It’s very difficult for this driver, very difficult to cope with this car. These machines are incredibly heavy and fast, and maybe it wasn’t the right moment to put Franco in Formula 1. Perhaps he needs another year or two before he is fully ready.”

Briatore stressed that Colapinto’s work ethic has not been the issue. “He tries very hard. He’s working constantly with the engineers, trying to please them in every way. But the results aren’t what I expected,” he added.

The veteran boss went on to reflect that Alpine may have placed excessive pressure on the youngster by thrusting him into competition against a seasoned teammate like Gasly. “We changed drivers, bringing in Franco Colapinto. Maybe it was too much pressure, too soon. Last year, he had two or three good races with James Vowles at Williams, but to join a team with Pierre—always in direct comparison—it might have been more than he was ready for,” Briatore explained.

He also admitted that teams sometimes overlook the mental side of driver management. “We have to remember that these are young kids—19, 20, 22, 23 years old. They’re not machines. I think it was a mistake to underestimate the human side of the driver. Maybe I missed something in managing Franco. For the future, honestly, I don’t know.”

Unless Colapinto can turn things around quickly, his Alpine seat looks insecure. The team had been linked with experienced campaigners such as Valtteri Bottas and Sergio Pérez for 2026, but both have since committed to Cadillac’s new F1 project.

That leaves Alpine weighing other options. Doohan, despite his short-lived stint earlier this season, remains in contention, while the team also has several junior drivers waiting in the wings. Another candidate is Mick Schumacher, who has been racing for Alpine in the World Endurance Championship. Schumacher has made a strong start to 2025 with three podiums in five races and has repeatedly expressed his ambition to return to Formula 1 after his two-year stint with Haas in 2021 and 2022.

For now, though, the focus remains on Colapinto. With Briatore openly conceding mistakes in how his promotion was handled, the next few races could be decisive in determining whether the Argentine’s F1 career stalls—or whether he can prove he deserves a longer stay on the grid.