Jacques Villeneuve's concern over Franco Colapinto: ‘Fast, but also a crasher’
“He’s fast, but he’s also a crasher. So, which Franco will we get? It’s always a toss of the dice. You just don’t know.”
1997 F1 world champion Jacques Villeneuve says Franco Colapinto must prove he can be fast without crashing after taking over Jack Doohan’s Alpine seat for the next five races.
After the Miami Grand Prix, Alpine announced that Colapinto will replace Doohan for the next five races.
The Argentine’s rise to a full-time drive has been inevitable, having joined Alpine earlier this year as one of their test and reserve drivers.
Colapinto starred during his nine-race stint at Williams last year.
While Colapinto showed outstanding pace alongside Alex Albon, his stock fell at the end of 2024 due to several high-profile mistakes.
At the time, Red Bull and Alpine were exploring the possibility of signing him, but Colapinto had to settle for a reserve role with the French team.
Colapinto will have five races to prove himself, starting at this weekend’s Emilia Romagna Grand Prix.
Speaking ahead of FP1 at Imola on Friday, Villeneuve expressed reservations over Colapinto.
“He’s fast, but he’s also a crasher. So, which Franco will we get? It’s always a toss of the dice. You just don’t know,” he said.
“So, will he be able to be as fast without crashing, or will he have to slow down to not crash? That’s the big question, and we’ll find out because he’s had a year out to digest.”
Colapinto set up for easier run
With Colapinto making his Alpine debut at the start of this European triple-header, it should be easier for him to get up to speed.
Giving her view on Alpine’s driver swap, Jamie Chadwick said: “I think what’s good for him now is that he’s at tracks he knows. He’s at European tracks. He’s done a lot in the junior categories here.
“Last year he was thrown into a lot of tracks he wouldn’t have known. He had COTA, Singapore, tracks that really were challenging. I think in that sense it’s going to be a little bit easier for him.
“That said, he’s got to hammer down as a race driver. He can’t show flashes of speed. He’s got to show complete weekend performances. He’s got to get those points for the team.
“That will make the difference if he’s going to make out the rest of the year.”
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