Fernando Romero Nuñez Despite his first-ever retirement from a Formula 1 race at the Brazil Grand Prix, Argentine driver Franco Colapinto keeps impressing the motoring world. The 21-year-old racer won the October Overtake of the Month award on Monday and even got praise from Max Verstappen’s father.
The move that got him the fan-voted award was his pass on two-time world champion Fernando Alonso at the U.S. Grand Prix, which was only his fourth race.
In the 23rd lap, Colapinto caught up to the Spanish driver and pulled off a dazzling move that showcased his talent. The Argentine racer darted along the inside after the longest straight in the track, then defended against Alonso’s attempted riposte, to claim tenth place.
The two go back a long way. It was the Asturian racer who owned the team where Colapinto had his breakthrough in Spanish F4. “There was no fighting today,” said the Aston Martin driver after the race, adding that the Williams car was running a second quicker than his car.
At one stage, Colapinto even held the race’s fastest lap, which awards an additional point. However, France’s Esteban Ocon from Alpine made an extra stop to don soft compound tires, the quickest available for teams, and ended up stealing the bonus.
‘We’d have to see him racing for a big team’
Despite a massive following from Argentine fans on the stands, Brazil wasn’t Colapinto’s best race. The Argentine driver crashed hard against the barriers in the 32nd lap, after heavy rains forced the race organizers to bring out a Safety Car.
But the storms weren’t the only thing surrounding Colapinto in Brazil. Rumors of a Red Bull seat for Colapinto have been on the rise ever since key team advisor Helmut Marko criticized current driver Sergio “Checo” Pérez after the Mexican Grand Prix, saying “the upswing in form we were hoping for did not materialize.”
The talk got louder in Brazil after Horner was seen leaving the Williams’ hospitality on Friday, but the latest member of the Red Bull circle to give his take on Colapinto was Jos Verstappen, the father of defending champion Max.
“He’s doing a good job, but we’d have to see him racing for a big team,” Verstappen told Infobae. The 52-year-old Dutchman, who drove for several F1 teams between 1994 and 2003, added he’s keen to see what Colapinto can do over a whole season.
“He’s doing alright. He’s lacking a little bit of pace during qualifying, but he’s only done a handful of races,” he said. Asked if he’d like to see the Argentine driver as his son’s teammate, Verstappen said he’d heard the rumors but that the decision is “not up to him.”