While Franco Colapinto enjoys his vacation in Argentina after an intense year, his future in the Formula 1. Despite not having finished the season in the best way, to say that the arrival of the Argentine did not revolutionize the paddock would be a lie as clear as day. Several teams were paying close attention to it, and although some offers fell over time, there are some that are still afloat.
“Franco Colapinto has been a star who shone a lot but who has suffered from crashes. These things are noticeable. Suddenly a question appears. There was a great entry into F1 in which people said: ‘Wow,'” he commented. Johnny Herbertformer pilot of the Great Circus between 1989 and 2000, CoinPoker.
With four promising races and another five accidents – not all of them his fault – Colapinto caught the attention of Flavio BriatoreAlpine’s top advisor, who seemed to be having a major dilemma several weeks ago about the future of Jack Doohan on his team for next season.
The reason for this dilemma is none other than the talent of Franco Colapinto. His first races exceeded expectations and put the Argentine on the radar of the Italian and many others, but Briatore is the one who is still considering incorporating the Argentine into the French team.
This creates a double dilemma for the Italian, since to sign Colapinto he would have to run alongside Doohan, his junior reserve driver who was called up to replace Esteban Ocon in the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix a couple of weeks ago.
“I would do the same,” he said. Marc Surerthe former Swiss driver with 87 Formula 1 races in his career who today works as an analyst for the Maximum in Sky Germany. When asked about Doohan’s future at Alpine, the Swiss commented: “He deserves to be used. I think it’s great, because otherwise, why would you promote young drivers?”, but at the same time raised the idea that the Australian would not meet expectations.
“But if he doesn’t get it, if there is someone else on the market like Colapinto, who has shown talent, but also many crashes, but still, there is still something to gain, there is still a diamond in the rough…“Opined Surer. “Why not, if it is said to have more long-term potential? So I understand Briatore and he’s tough enough to do it.”
It is a difficult decision, no one can deny it, but if anyone knows what it means to take risks when recruiting great talent, it is Flavio Briatore. The Italian was the man behind the sudden change of Michael Schumacher to Benetton in 1991 after the German’s outstanding career for Jordan. It was a risky move, but it was the first step in Schumacher becoming a motorsports legend.
However, talent is not the only factor to consider. “In this sport, after a good race, they quickly praise you to the heavens. Then the price goes up, and suddenly we are talking about 20 or 30 million dollars,” declared the Italian in an interview with Car Motor and Sport about the money that Williams would have asked for the Argentine.