Argentine racing star Franco Colapinto drove his first laps in an Alpine car on Wednesday. The 21-year-old racer arrived at the French team from Williams in January, but hadn’t yet driven for them. The test was shown by Flavio Briatore, a key team advisor who was instrumental in Colapinto arriving to the team, which fueled talks about the Argentine driver’s future.

Colapinto drove the Alpine A523, which the team used in 2023, as part of the Testing of a Previous Car sessions, in which reserve drivers trial cars from at least two seasons ago.

The test took place at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, in Montmeló, where the Spanish Grand Prix has been held since 1991. The track is a favorite for testing and development because it usually has favorable conditions and features a wide range of turns. This allows teams to see how the car behaves at various kinds of corners. Seven-time World Champion Brit Lewis Hamilton tested a two-year-old Ferrari as part of the same initiative a week ago.

Talk of a main driver seat increases

Alpine’s current main driver, Australia’s Jack Doohan, took the test on Tuesday, but no footage was released. Briatore posted a video of Colapinto getting into the car on Instagram, fueling talk about the Argentine driver’s role in the 2025 season. 

“I don’t think Flavio trusts Doohan,” former Benetton director Joan Villadelprat told streaming channel Data Performance F1 on Tuesday. “I think [the Australian] has his races numbered. Flavio thinks he has the next Schumacher or Alonso with Colapinto, […] that’s why he invested US$20 million.”

Briatore, an Italian businessman and former team principal, was the one behind the signing of German Michael Schumacher to Benetton in 1991 and Fernando Alonso to Renault in 2002. He praised Colapinto’s performances throughout the 2024 season, and is seen as instrumental to his arrival to Alpine.