Franco Colapinto

Franco Alejandro Colapinto (; born 27 May 2003) is an Argentine racing driver who competes in Formula One for Alpine.

Born and raised in Pilar, Buenos Aires, Colapinto began competitive kart racing aged nine, winning several regional and national championships. Graduating to junior formulae in 2018, Colapinto won his first title at the 2019 F4 Spanish Championship with Drivex. He then finished third in the Formula Renault Eurocup and the Toyota Racing Series in 2020. Colapinto moved into sportscar racing in 2021, competing in the LMP2 class of the FIA World Endurance Championship, European Le Mans Series and Asian Le Mans Series for G-Drive, finishing third at the latter. He also contested Formula Regional European with MP, finishing sixth overall. Colapinto progressed to FIA Formula 3 in , finishing fourth the following season with MP and graduating to FIA Formula 2.

A member of the Williams Driver Academy in 2023–2024, Colapinto made his Formula One debut with Williams at the 2024 Italian Grand Prix, replacing Logan Sargeant for the remainder of the season as an interim for the incoming Carlos Sainz Jr. With his debut, he became the first Argentine driver to compete in Formula One since Gastón Mazzacane in . Colapinto scored his maiden points finish at the , repeating this feat in the United States. He joined Alpine as a reserve driver for and was promoted after six Grands Prix to replace Jack Doohan.

Early and personal life

Franco Alejandro Colapinto was born on 27 May 2003 in Pilar, Buenos Aires, Argentina. Colapinto is of Italian descent through his father, and of Ukrainian descent through his mother Andrea Trofimczuk; he is a dual citizen of Argentina and Italy.

Colapinto's favourite drivers are Lewis Hamilton and Ayrton Senna, and his favourite racing circuit is Spa-Francorchamps. He is a supporter of his local football team Boca Juniors.

Junior racing career

Karting

Colapinto started karting at the age of nine. He won the Argentine Championship in 2016 (Pre-Junior class) and 2018 (Sudam class), as well as the Buenos Aires Regional Championship in 2016 (Pre-Junior class) and 2017 (Junior class). Colapinto moved to Italy by himself when he was 14 years old to pursue his racing career. Colapinto won the gold medal at the 2018 Youth Summer Olympics in partnership with María García Puig.

F4 Spanish Championship

2018

Colapinto made his car racing debut in 2018, participating in the final round of the F4 Spanish Championship, driving for Drivex School. His father sold his house to pay for the season. On debut, he finished second in race three and was victorious in the final race.

2019

In 2019, Colapinto signed with FA Racing by Drivex for a full campaign in the F4 Spanish Championship. His father had to sell his house to fund the season. He started his season strongly with two wins in the opening three rounds. This was followed by a hat trick of wins in Valencia and the season finale in Barcelona. With a total of ten poles, 11 wins and 13 podiums, Colapinto clinched the title, nearly 100 points ahead of his nearest rival.

Euroformula Open

During the 2019 season, Colapinto drove for Drivex as a guest driver in the 2019 round at Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps. He finished the races in 15th and 14th position.

Formula Renault Eurocup

2019

Drivex also ran Colapinto during the 2019 season at Spa and Catalunya.

2020

In July 2020, Colapinto joined Formula Renault Eurocup full-time with MP Motorsport. He won his first race on debut during the first race in Monza, and claimed a third place in the second race. In a season dominated by Victor Martins and Caio Collet, Colapinto only returned to the podium during the fifth round in Zandvoort, but was still able to win once again in Spa-Francorchamps. With four further podiums following that, which brought his podium tally nine throughout the season, he placed third in the championship with 213.5 points.

Toyota Racing Series

In January 2020, Colapinto joined Kiwi Motorsport for the 2020 Toyota Racing Series. The season saw him claim a race win in Hampton Downs, which would be his only one of the campaign. He would later finish on the podium for the remaining two rounds of the season, allowing him to take third in the standings.

Formula Regional European Championship

In 2021, Colapinto joined the inaugural Formula Regional European Championship with MP Motorsport. He missed the Imola opener due to clashing sportscar commitments, and had a woeful weekend the next time out in Barcelona. In Monaco, after having his lap times deleted in qualifying due to a technical infraction, Colapinto opted to withdraw from the weekend. He finally took his first podium with second place during the fifth round in Zandvoort, before securing a double victory at the Red Bull Ring. However, the second win would be stripped from him due to track limits. Nevertheless, Colapinto rebounded the following round in Valencia by winning the first race and runner-up in the second. Colapinto eventually finished sixth in the standings despite missing two rounds, lamenting his start to the season as a "lack of pace".

FIA Formula 3 Championship

2022

In October 2020, Colapinto joined MP Motorsport for the first day of post-season testing at Catalunya. He did likewise the following year at Valencia, but ended up signing for Van Amersfoort Racing instead for the 2022 season, partnering Rafael Villagómez and Reece Ushijima. Colapinto started his with a pole position on his and his team's debut in the series in Sakhir. He led the feature race for the first half of the race, but was eventually passed by Victor Martins and Arthur Leclerc, slipping to third. He was then give a time penalty for track limits which dropped Colapinto to fifth. In Imola, he qualified on reverse pole for the sprint race, but lost the lead early on to Caio Collet. Despite that, Colapinto would re-pass him back on the final lap, scoring his and VAR's maiden victory in the series. In the feature race, a wrong tyre choice on a damp track left him to finish down in 22nd place. After finishing ninth in the Barcelona feature race, Colapinto went scoreless during the Silverstone round as he was eliminated on the opening lap from a collision.

In Spielberg, Colapinto returned to the podium with third place in the sprint race, having fended off Leclerc. He would grab points in the feature race with sixth. In the Budapest sprint race Colapinto quickly moved into the lead at the start, but later was unable to defend from Collet, but still managed to finish in second place despite having to manage an electrical issue. A disappointing weekend followed in Spa-Francorchamps where he failed to score, he managed to qualify fifth in Zandvoort. After finishing 13th in the sprint, Colapinto progressed to finish third on Sunday, his first feature race podium. Qualifying again on reverse pole during the final round in Monza, Colapinto led from start to finish for his second win, albeit having to defend hard from Oliver Bearman on the final lap. With two wins and five podiums, Colapinto ended his rookie F3 season ninth in the drivers' standings with 76 points.

2023

In September, Colapinto partook in the 2022 post-season test, again with MP Motorsport. On January 9, 2023, he was announced as MP Motorsport's driver for the 2023 season, partnering Jonny Edgar and Mari Boya. At the opening Sakhir round, Colapinto qualified on reverse pole, but lost out to Pepe Martí in the sprint and he ended in second place. He would finish tenth in the feature race. Qualifying seventh in Melbourne, Colapinto slowly climbed up the order, passing Sebastián Montoya on lap 6 to claim his first victory of the season. However, Colapinto was later disqualified. He then crashed out of the feature race after being hit by Luke Browning, ending his miserable weekend. Colapinto had a solid weekend in Monaco, finishing fourth in the sprint and sixth in the feature race.

Colapinto secured third on the grid in Barcelona. He had strong pace in the sprint where he moved up the field to place sixth. In the feature race, he overcame Taylor Barnard early on to secure second place at the chequered flag. Qualifying seventh in Austria, Colapinto battled his way to the podium positions in the feature race, but a last lap contact with Montoya dropped him to fourth place. After qualifying ninth in Silverstone, Colapinto sat in third throughout the sprint race, but inherited the lead after Montoya and Barnard ahead collided. From there, he won clinch his first win of the year, dedicating his victory to Dilano van 't Hoff who was killed in a fatal crash in FRECA. He finished eighth in the feature race. In Budapest, after qualifying fourth and making his way to seventh place in the sprint, Colapinto scored another feature race podium having overtook Leonardo Fornaroli on lap 9 for third.

Colapinto qualified fourth in Spa-Francorchamps, and scored more points in the races with fifth in the sprint, and a wrong tyre strategy meant he finished tenth in the feature race. In the Monza season finale, he qualified on reverse pole and had a fierce battle with teammate Boya in the sprint race, but Colapinto won out and was able to take his second win of the campaign. His feature race ended disappointingly on the opening lap as contact with a driver broke his suspension. Despite that, Colapinto concluded the season fourth in the Drivers' Championship, with two wins, five podiums and 110 points.

Macau Grand Prix

Colapinto was set to race in the 2023 Macau Grand Prix with MP Motorsport. However, he withdrew from the event last-minute due to a broken collarbone he sustained prior to the final F3 round, and was replaced by Dennis Hauger.

FIA Formula 2 Championship

2023

In October 2023, MP Motorsport announced that they would promote Colapinto to their Formula 2 outfit for the final race in Yas Marina and the full 2024 season, replacing Jehan Daruvala. Ahead of his F2 debut, Colapinto expressed that "it's going to be tough" yet he was "super excited". He finished 19th in the sprint race, but retired from the feature race due to a sensor issue.

2024

For 2024 season, Colapinto was partnered at MP Motorsport alongside 2021 FIA Formula 3 champion Dennis Hauger. Qualifying 15th in Bahrain opener, he had a shaky sprint race but was able to move up the order in the feature race, as he scored his first points with sixth place. He would then have a woeful weekend in Jeddah, stalling in the sprint and had a suspension failure after colliding with the wall in the feature race. In Melbourne, Colapinto qualified 13th, but was able to navigate through the chaos in the sprint race and finish fourth. In the feature race, Colapinto fought back up to finish seventh, but was later disqualified due to a technical infringement. In Imola round, Colapinto qualified in the top 10, with ninth. A slow start dropped him to third during the sprint, but quickly overcame Amaury Cordeel and later made a daring last lap pass on Paul Aron for the lead, which allowed Colapinto to claim his first F2 victory. He followed that with a strong fifth place in the feature race.

Colapinto scored more points in Monaco with fifth place in the sprint race after a strong qualifying, but a late slump in the feature race saw him slip to 13th place. In Barcelona, Colapinto secured third in qualifying. A track limits penalty demoted him to 18th in the sprint race, but a strong showing in the feature race rewarded him with second place.
In Austria, he qualified fourth and a heated battle in the sprint with teammate Hauger turned for the worse as Colapinto spun on the final lap, dropping him to 11th. Nonetheless, the next day, an alternate strategy saw Colapinto climb up the field in the late laps to finish second, scoring another podium. Colapinto qualified fourth in Silverstone, and managed the wet weather during the sprint to finish fifth, which included a last-lap pass on Jak Crawford. Running the alternate strategy in the feature race allowed Colapinto to finish fourth. In Hungary, Colapinto picked up more points in a tricky sprint race to finish fifth, but an unlucky Safety Car timing on Sunday left him dropping from sixth to 13th. Colapinto would fail to score in Spa-Francorchamps as he struggled his way out of the points positions in a sprint race cut short early, while an engine issue ended his feature race on the first lap. At that time, Colapinto sat sixth in the standings with 96 points, 13 ahead of teammate Hauger.

Following his news of his promotion to Formula One with Williams Racing ahead of Monza, Colapinto vacated his seat at MP Motorsport and was replaced by Oliver Goethe.

Formula One career

In January 2023, Colapinto joined the Williams Driver Academy. Colapinto completed his first Formula One test at the post-season test at Yas Marina, driving the Williams FW45. He set the twenty-second fastest time overall, completing 65 laps. Colapinto made his Formula One free practice debut at the 2024 British Grand Prix, driving for Williams in the first session in place of Logan Sargeant. Colapinto stated that it was a "historic moment" representing Argentina at the event.

Williams (2024)

In the middle of the season after the , Colapinto was announced as the replacement for Logan Sargeant at Williams, debuting at the and contracted to compete at the remaining nine rounds of the season. Colapinto became the first Formula One driver from Argentina since Gastón Mazzacane at the 2001 San Marino Grand Prix. On debut, Colapinto qualified eighteenth and finished twelfth. The following race in Azerbaijan, he qualified ninth and finished eighth, becoming the first Argentine to score points in Formula One since Carlos Reutemann at the 1982 South African Grand Prix. At the , he finished eleventh and received praise from Red Bull's Sergio Pérez for his defensive driving.

Colapinto finished tenth at the , scoring another points finish. In Mexico City, he qualified sixteenth and recovered to twelfth in the race. After the race, the FIA handed Colapinto a 10-second time penalty—which did not affect his position—for a collision with Liam Lawson, as well as two penalty points on his FIA Super License for 12 months. At the , Colapinto finished twelfth in the sprint race after starting fourteenth. Colapinto crashed out of the first qualifying session—delayed until Sunday by the FIA due to torrential rain—and qualified eighteenth for the Grand Prix, starting sixteenth after grid penalties for Max Verstappen and Carlos Sainz Jr. In the rain-affected race, Colapinto crashed out on lap 31 under safety car conditions, causing a red flag.

In qualifying for the , Colapinto suffered a impact with the barrier after crashing, forcing him to start the race from the pitlane; he finished fourteenth. Due to his several accidents, Colapinto was forced to use outdated car components during the . After finishing eighteenth in the sprint, he qualified nineteenth for the main race before retiring following a lap one collision with Nico Hülkenberg and Esteban Ocon. Colapinto qualified nineteenth for the season-ending , ahead of debutant Jack Doohan, and started last following a gearbox penalty. He suffered a rear puncture on the third lap after a collision with Oscar Piastri, and ultimately retired on lap 26 with a cooling issue. He finished the season nineteenth in the standings, having achieved five championship points across nine Grands Prix.

Alpine (2025)

In , Colapinto joined Alpine as a test and reserve driver on a multi-year deal. Amidst rumours he could replace full-time driver Jack Doohan during the season, team supervisor Flavio Briatore guaranteed that Alpine would start the season with Doohan, adding that "after that, we’ll see".

Following the Miami Grand Prix, Doohan, who was demoted to reserve driver, was confirmed to have lost his Alpine seat to Colapinto on a "rotating seat" basis, with the latter scheduled to debut at the subsequent Emilia Romagna Grand Prix and race for Alpine for five races. After crashing in qualifying and taking a one-place grid penalty, he started and finished the race in sixteenth.

Other racing

Sportscar racing career

In the 2021 pre-season, Colapinto took part in the Asian Le Mans Series for G-Drive Racing. Although he did not win, Colapinto and his teammates Rui Andrade and John Falb achieved three podiums throughout the season, which placed them third in the LMP2 standings.

Later in the season, Colapinto continued with G-Drive Racing to race in the European Le Mans Series partnering with Nyck de Vries and Roman Rusinov as well as for his maiden 24 Hours of Le Mans. He took his first endurance racing victory during the 4 Hours of Le Castellet, having secured his first ELMS podium prior to that at the Red Bull Ring. Colapinto then took his first pole position in Monza but a strategic error saw them plummet down the order, before recovering to eighth. He eventually finished fourth overall in the standings. In Le Mans, Colapinto was able to pull through and secure seventh in the LMP2 category.

Colapinto would also take part in the 24 Hours of Spa with Team WRT in a last-minute stand in for Stuart Hall. The team finished in 14th place.

Karting record

Karting career summary

Complete CIK-FIA Karting European Championship results

( key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap)

Racing record

Racing career summary

As Colapinto was a guest driver, he was ineligible for championship points.

Season still in progress.

Complete F4 Spanish Championship results

( key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap)

Complete Euroformula Open Championship results

( key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap)

Complete Formula Renault Eurocup results

( key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap)

^† As Colapinto was a guest driver, he was ineligible for points.

^‡ Half points awarded as less than 75% of race distance was completed.

Complete Toyota Racing Series results

( key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap)

Complete Asian Le Mans Series results

( key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap)

Complete Formula Regional European Championship results

( key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap)

^† Driver did not finish the race, but was classified as they completed more than 90% of the race distance.

Complete European Le Mans Series results

Complete 24 Hours of Le Mans results

Complete Intercontinental GT Challenge results

Complete FIA Formula 3 Championship results

( key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in ''italics'' indicate points for the fastest lap of top ten finishers)

Complete FIA Formula 2 Championship results

( key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in ''italics'' indicate points for the fastest lap of top ten finishers)

Complete Formula One results

( key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap; ^superscript indicates point-scoring sprint position)

Season still in progress.

References

External links

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Colapinto, Franco
2003 births
Living people
Argentine racing drivers
Argentine people of Ukrainian descent
Argentine people of Italian descent
Spanish F4 Championship drivers
Formula Renault Eurocup drivers
Euroformula Open Championship drivers
Toyota Racing Series drivers
GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup drivers
Formula Regional European Championship drivers
FIA World Endurance Championship drivers
24 Hours of Le Mans drivers
European Le Mans Series drivers
Asian Le Mans Series drivers
MP Motorsport drivers
FIA Formula 3 Championship drivers
Van Amersfoort Racing drivers
G-Drive Racing drivers
W Racing Team drivers
Drivex drivers
Karting World Championship drivers
FA Racing drivers
Audi Sport drivers
Competitors at the 2018 Summer Youth Olympics
Racing drivers from Buenos Aires
24 Hours of Spa drivers
FIA Formula 2 Championship drivers
Argentine Formula One drivers
Williams Formula One drivers
Alpine Formula One drivers
21st-century Argentine sportsmen