Flavio Briatore says he has seen whatever he has to from Franco Colapinto, as he adds on Pierre Gasly and other drivers plus Alpine’s F1 ambitions.
After backing Colapinto when Alpine switched on him from Jack Doohan, Briatore has now seen enough of the Argentine and he feels he made a mistake in underestimating the human factor in selecting a youngster. The Italian reckons Colapinto needed a couple more seasons before F1 step.
He thinks Colapinto is trying too hard which is not working out for him and at this juncture he doesn’t know about the future course. Williams’ James Vowles concurred on the pressure factor that a driver carries, especially a youngster, and what they face due to a close grid like in F1 2025.
Aside Colapinto, Briatore noted that they had talks with Valtteri Bottas and even Sergio Perez, but it was never about driving for Alpine. Interestingly, the Italian noted that he helped on the marketing side for the Finn in his pitch to join Cadillac. He praised Gasly’s work and sees him as absolute leader.
Podiums is the target for 2026 with the backing of new Renault CEO, who likens F1 but wants results. Briatore ruled out taking in Christian Horner, as he addressed himself along with Horner and Bernie Ecclestone as ‘sharks’ after Toto Wolff noted them as ‘mafia’ when answering of the potential of the trio co-owning Alpine in the future.
Colapinto situation –
Briatore: “I think I see everything already. I don’t need to see anything anymore. It’s difficult. For this driver, it’s very difficult to cope with this car. These cars are very, very heavy, very quick. And for a young driver to put in Formula 1, maybe it was not the timing to have Franco in Formula 1. Maybe he needs another year or two to be part of Formula 1. And I know that, in the end, what is important is the result. He tries very hard. He tries very hard with the engineers to please them in everything, but it’s not what I expect from Colapinto. We make not so many changes. We changed, bringing in Franco Colapinto. And maybe Colapinto – the same problem as what Toto said – too much pressure to be in Formula 1.
“Last year, he had two or three races with James, where he did very well. But maybe to be in the team with a good driver like Pierre, and always in competition with the team-mate, maybe we put too much pressure on him. I think we need to consider that. Sometimes we believe… the driver is a human being and we need to understand what’s going on in the heads of these kids. These are young kids – 19, 20, 22, 23 years old – and I think it’s our mistake to underestimate the human part of the driver. We’re always looking at the timing. Maybe I missed something in the management of the driver, Colapinto. For the future, honestly, I don’t know.”
James Vowles: “I think Flavio summed it up well. You have to remember – if something goes wrong with the Williams in a session, even though we’re fifth in the championship, it’s not really covered. But we have teams around us – Mercedes is one of those – where everything is in the limelight and the spotlight. So that’s change number one: the pressure goes up immensely. When the pressure’s not there, you’re able to get a lot more out of the driver because they’re not concerned about an immediate performance having an impact. Therefore, they can let go. A good example is Franco – the first time I put him in at Silverstone, he thought it was his only chance ever to get there.
“My message to him beforehand was, it’s nothing to do with lap times. It’s about you relaxing and enjoying the moment because this may never come back to you again. And he did a stellar performance. I don’t think you can do that in Monza, in that circumstance, in a Williams. No chance you can do that. Second change is, again, what Flavio described – three tenths now separates the grid. So when you make a small mistake – and a small mistake is a tenth – you’re last. That’s a different world to where you were before, where frankly, you could be a tenth off your team-mate and no one would know about it. So I think you’ve got two changes that are making this more difficult now.”
Bottas or Perez had a chance –
Briatore: “No, really. I talked with a lot of people. I talked with Bottas as well. We talked with Toto as well at the time, but really, there was never a discussion for Bottas to drive for Alpine. I think so Alpine helped Bottas a little bit to sign the contract with Cadillac. We did some marketing. But this is the reason, honestly. I like Valtteri because he’s a super driver. And what Toto says is exactly the same. He was unlucky to be in Mercedes at the same time as Lewis, when Lewis was really at the peak of his driving. We have a different idea, but it’s nice to have Valtteri back. It’s nice to have a driver back with a lot of experience, but I’m looking for something else.”
Gasly as leader –
Briatore: “Yeah. Absolutely. Absolutely, yes [he is the leader]. He’s good. He’s consistent. He’s a team player. I know him very well. We need some base in the team, and Pierre is a base in the team for the future.”
Horner at Alpine or Horner-Briatore-Ecclestone scene –
Briatore: “I no consider in this moment anything. Christian is not in Formula 1 in this moment anymore. I hope he comes back soon. But for the moment, he’s not in the picture of the team.”
Toto Wolff: “That would be an exciting story, I guess, and would create lots of buzz around Formula 1. I think we need that. Formula 1 has always been about the best racing, with exciting drivers and great personalities. And when you look back at the grand era of team owners and team principals – Frank Williams, Ron Dennis, Flavio, [Luca Di] Montezemolo, and a few others – maybe we need to work on that. And if there was such an exciting project, these three guys coming together – all of the mafia reunited – that would give good content, I guess.”
Briatore: “The sharks. The shark mafia.”
Wolff: “Three sharks.”
New CEO and his thoughts plus team manager –
Briatore: “The new CEO for Renault – I think Renault in the last thirty years, it’s not new. He was number two to Luca DeMeo. The new CEO is very enthusiastic about the Formula 1 programme. Renault wants to stay in Formula 1. I believe François [Provost] is in Monza for the first race. I know him very well. And really, the programme is the same. The chairman, [Jean-Dominique] Senard, is very supportive of Formula 1. We need better results – this is what we need for next year. But this year is very complicated for us. We put a lot of effort into the 2026 car, like Toto said. But it’s not easy to interpret the rules. Maybe we made a mistake by not having any steps from the beginning of the season to now, and we pay for that. As well, in this moment, two or three tenths, it’s ten or 15 cars. We know we have a big handicap with power – with the engine. We hope to forget this year and be happy in 2026. That’s what we hope in this moment.
“I hope as well that the new chairman of Renault is very supportive. And for the moment, in the Renault Group, there’s no drama, no change. Everybody’s happy. Yes [objectives is podiums in 2026]. Because if it’s you need to change the job. I change the job – maybe you give me a job! I have a job with Toto. As for Steve [Nielsen, new team manager], not just job number one. When you’re in Formula 1, in one team, it’s a job for the team. And it will be good. I’ve known Steve a long time – he was with me at Renault. We need somebody like Steve. We need a team manager. We need somebody who knows the system and knows the people, and someone who coordinates the team from A to Z. It’s not just one job I expect from Steve. I expect Steve to be in charge from A to Z. Basically, it’s what the managing director is doing. And I’m happy to have Steve next week. I believe the first day is Monday, and our first race with Steve is in Monza.”
Here’s F1 drivers on Cadillac line-up
Here’s Franco Colapinto on Pierre Gasly plus step from F2
