Franco Colapinto could not hold back his tears after the Italian Grand Prix. Despite climbing up to ninth place, the Argentine was terribly upset with himself for making a mistake when he could have been fighting for the top positions.
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Franco Colapinto struggled to find his words after the finish of the Italian Grand Prix. Very emotional in front of the cameras, the Alpine driver ended up breaking down in tears thinking about the mistake that probably cost him a major result at Monza.
Starting seventh, the Argentine had perfectly managed the start of the race and especially the events leading up to the red flag caused by Charles Leclerc’s violent accident.
Colapinto thus found himself at the front and could dream of a huge result for Alpine. But moments after the restart, an off-track excursion into the gravel at the first Lesmo abruptly ended his hopes.
Colapinto suddenly finds himself at the front
The race had taken a particularly favorable turn for the 23-year-old driver.
Seventh on the grid, Colapinto took advantage of the events in the early laps to progress. Just before the race was stopped, he notably used up what energy he had left to attack Oscar Piastri.
The move worked and allowed him to climb up to fourth position before the red flag.
At that moment, Alpine was in an extremely interesting situation with Pierre Gasly also positioned at the front.
At the restart, Colapinto even briefly managed to overtake Max Verstappen to take third place behind his teammate.
An almost ideal prospect for Alpine after just a few laps.
A mistake at Lesmo destroys his hopes
But the situation quickly turned.
While holding fourth position, Colapinto made a mistake entering the first Lesmo corner. His Alpine ran wide and ended up in the gravel.
The Argentine was able to continue his race, but the time lost was considerable.
He dropped back to fifteenth place, turning in a few seconds a possible fight for the top positions into a long recovery drive.
The mistake also deprived Alpine of the chance to use both cars together in the battle for big points.
“I wasted a very important opportunity”
After 53 laps, Colapinto was still having a hard time accepting what had just happened.
Interviewed in front of ESPN and DAZN cameras, the Argentine tried to talk about his mistake before emotion took over.
“It could have been… a very good race and I made… a big mistake,” he explains with difficulty.
The Alpine driver pauses several times before acknowledging the extent of his regrets.
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“So I wasted a very important opportunity for the team and for myself.”
Words spoken in tears, illustrating how much Colapinto was aware of the result that seemed within his reach before his off-track excursion.
A remarkable climb back to ninth place
His mistake did not mark the end of his race.
Falling back to fifteenth, Colapinto managed to regain his composure behind the wheel of the A526 and start a solid recovery through the field.
Lap after lap, the Argentine gained positions to finally cross the finish line in ninth place.
A performance that allows him to leave Monza with points despite his trip into the gravel.
He also finishes only two positions behind Gasly, who was seventh at the finish.
Without his mistake at the restart, Alpine’s collective result could have been much more significant, and that is precisely what seemed to haunt Colapinto after the race.
Colapinto wants to learn from his mistake
Despite his deep disappointment, the Argentine tries to turn this episode into experience for the rest of his career.
“So I am a bit sad, but I have to learn from this and keep pushing.”
Ninth place is also a reason for satisfaction given the situation he found himself in.
After dropping from fourth to fifteenth, Colapinto could have easily let his mistake affect the rest of his Grand Prix. Instead, he managed to refocus and save two points.
But a few minutes after the finish, it was obviously not this recovery that was on his mind.
Immense regrets despite the points
Monza will therefore remain a particularly contrasting race for Colapinto.
On one hand, the Alpine driver showed his ability to fight at the front, seize opportunities, and come back into the points after a big mistake. On the other hand, he knows a rare chance presented itself to him and he failed to capitalize on it.
With Gasly ahead of him and Verstappen within reach at the restart, Alpine could have hoped to place both cars very high in the standings.
Colapinto ultimately saved ninth place, but it was not enough to ease his disappointment. In tears after the finish, the Argentine held on to only one thing: that mistake at the first Lesmo which turned what could have been one of his best Formula 1 races into a huge missed opportunity.
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