{"id":151073,"date":"2025-09-21T11:46:48","date_gmt":"2025-09-21T11:46:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/151073\/"},"modified":"2025-09-21T11:46:48","modified_gmt":"2025-09-21T11:46:48","slug":"franco-colapinto-would-rather-have-a-little-crash-than-slow-down","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/151073\/","title":{"rendered":"Franco Colapinto would rather \u201chave a little crash\u201d than slow down"},"content":{"rendered":"

After crashing in qualifying for the Formula 1 Azerbaijan Grand Prix<\/a>, Franco Colapinto<\/a> revealed that he would rather be fast around a race track and \u201chave a little crash\u201d than have a clean, slow lap in his Alpine<\/a> F1 car. <\/p>\n

The Argentine\u00a0was on a flying lap in Q1 at the Baku street circuit, which he says was \u201cthree tenths up after three corners\u201d. However, at Turn 4 he encountered team-mate Pierre Gasly<\/a>, who had taken to the escape road after making a mistake. Colapinto also struggled at the corner, but had no escape road to take and made contact with the wall \u2013 ending his session and leaving him lining up 16th for the grand prix.<\/p>\n

Advertisement<\/p>\n

The result wasn\u2019t what the 22-year-old was hoping for on the streets of Baku, as he is currently fighting to convince Alpine bosses that he deserves his spot<\/a> at the French team for 2026.<\/p>\n

When asked about how he can prove himself to the team following the crash, Colapinto argued that he has been \u201creally good in qualifying\u201d in recent weeks, before explaining his all-or-nothing approach to F1. <\/p>\n

\u201cI always prefer to have a little crash when I go quick than just to be slow and have always no damage,\u201d he explained. <\/p>\n

Advertisement<\/p>\n

\u201cIt’s not nice to finish like this today, but I’m sure that there is much more to come and that we are doing good steps with the team. These things can happen here in a street track, it’s always very tight margins.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd when you are on the back foot and always very, very close to go through \u2013 our prediction was probably P18 today in qualifying \u2013 we have to make always an extra effort to go through and have a perfect lap. When these things happen, it’s always a bit more tricky.\u201d <\/p>\n

Franco Colapinto, Alpine\"Franco<\/p>\n

Franco Colapinto, Alpine<\/p>\n

The other aspect that made putting together the perfect lap on Saturday harder was the wind around Baku, which was gusting over 50km\/h on some stretches of the track. The gusts caught several drivers out over the course of the session, and the tough conditions and raft of driver errors meant the session set a new record for red flags in F1 qualifying. <\/p>\n

Advertisement<\/p>\n

Read Also:<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Azerbaijan GP qualifying broke the F1 red flag record, here\u2019s how <\/a><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

What changed to cause so many red flags in F1 Azerbaijan GP qualifying? <\/a><\/p>\n

It was these tough conditions that Colapinto believes led to his session-ending contact with the wall. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt was very tricky,\u201d he said. \u201cProbably a lot of wind there, a lot of gust, and I went in the corner and I lost completely the rear. I don’t really know the reason for it, but I guess it’s a lot of tailwind and I think a 60-80km\/h gust, when it hits you like that, it lifts the rear up, and I just lost the rear completely.\u201d <\/p>\n

Advertisement<\/p>\n

What made Colapinto’s issue worse was that team-mate Gasly had just suffered problems of his own at Turn 4, but had taken to the escape road instead of the wall. This, Colapinto says, left him with few options once he lost the rear of his A525. <\/p>\n

\u201cHe went in the escape route, so couldn’t really go there and avoid the crash, because he was in there,\u201d Colapinto remarked. \u201cBut, yeah, just tricky. I think there were a few places that were a bit tricky to drive, quite unpredictable.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt’s always a distraction when someone goes off in the escape route, and you don’t know if it’s on a reverse or what. You always have a bit of a distraction. But that doesn’t take the part that, you know, I just lost a rear completely \u2013 really aggressively. <\/p>\n

Advertisement<\/p>\n

Read Also:<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Why Kimi Antonelli refrained from looking at crashed F1 cars during Baku qualifying <\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cI don’t really know the reason at the moment, but I need to see the data and understand why. Of course, it’s a pity, but we focus on tomorrow.\u201d <\/p>\n

The heavy impact Colapinto made means that he required a chassis change on his A525. Alpine confirmed that he will run its spare chassis in the race today, and said he has also taken a new gearbox. <\/p>\n

Colapinto currently sits 20th in the F1 drivers\u2019 standings with no points to his name, and admitted that Baku isn\u2019t a track that will favour his Alpine car. Instead, he says the team will \u201ckeep focused\u201d on Sunday and wait until the \u201cgood tracks come to us\u201d.<\/p>\n

Advertisement<\/p>\n

Photos from Azerbaijan GP – RaceCharles Leclerc, Ferrari, Lewis Hamilton, Ferrari\"Charles<\/p>\n

Charles Leclerc, Ferrari, Lewis Hamilton, Ferrari<\/p>\n

Bryn Lennon \/ Formula 1 \/ Getty Images<\/p>\n

Charles Leclerc, Ferrari\"Charles<\/p>\n

Charles Leclerc, Ferrari<\/p>\n

Jayce Illman \/ Getty Images<\/p>\n

Esteban Ocon, Haas F1 Team\"Esteban<\/p>\n

Esteban Ocon, Haas F1 Team<\/p>\n

Simon Galloway \/ LAT Images via Getty Images<\/p>\n

Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin Racing\"Fernando<\/p>\n

Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin Racing<\/p>\n

Rudy Carezzevoli \/ Getty Images<\/p>\n

Liam Lawson, Racing Bulls Team\"Liam<\/p>\n

Liam Lawson, Racing Bulls Team<\/p>\n

Kym Illman \/ Getty Images<\/p>\n

Andrea Kimi Antonelli, Mercedes\"Andrea<\/p>\n

Andrea Kimi Antonelli, Mercedes<\/p>\n

Kym Illman \/ Getty Images<\/p>\n

Toto Wolff, Mercedes\"Toto<\/p>\n

Toto Wolff, Mercedes<\/p>\n

Jayce Illman \/ Getty Images<\/p>\n

Advertisement<\/p>\n

Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing, Franco Colapinto, Alpine\"Max<\/p>\n

Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing, Franco Colapinto, Alpine<\/p>\n

Joe Portlock \/ LAT Images via Getty Images<\/p>\n

Nico Hulkenberg, Sauber\"Nico<\/p>\n

Nico Hulkenberg, Sauber<\/p>\n

Jayce Illman \/ Getty Images<\/p>\n

Yuki Tsunoda, Red Bull Racing Team\"Yuki<\/p>\n

Yuki Tsunoda, Red Bull Racing Team<\/p>\n

Simon Galloway \/ LAT Images via Getty Images<\/p>\n

Pierre Gasly, Alpine\"Pierre<\/p>\n

Pierre Gasly, Alpine<\/p>\n

Kym Illman \/ Getty Images<\/p>\n

George Russell, Mercedes\"George<\/p>\n

George Russell, Mercedes<\/p>\n

Jayce Illman \/ Getty Images<\/p>\n

Laurent Mekies, Red Bull Racing\"Laurent<\/p>\n

Laurent Mekies, Red Bull Racing<\/p>\n

Kym Illman \/ Getty Images<\/p>\n

Flavio Briatore, Executive Advisor, Alpine\"Flavio<\/p>\n

Flavio Briatore, Executive Advisor, Alpine<\/p>\n

Jayce Illman \/ Getty Images<\/p>\n

James Vowles, Team Principal, Williams\"James<\/p>\n

James Vowles, Team Principal, Williams<\/p>\n

Rudy Carezzevoli \/ Getty Images<\/p>\n

Advertisement<\/p>\n

Dr Helmut Marko, Team Consultant, Red Bull Racing\"Dr<\/p>\n

Dr Helmut Marko, Team Consultant, Red Bull Racing<\/p>\n

Kym Illman \/ Getty Images<\/p>\n

George Russell, Mercedes, Andrea Kimi Antonelli, Mercedes\"George<\/p>\n

George Russell, Mercedes, Andrea Kimi Antonelli, Mercedes<\/p>\n

Jayce Illman \/ Getty Images<\/p>\n

Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing, Yuki Tsunoda, Red Bull Racing Team\"Max<\/p>\n

Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing, Yuki Tsunoda, Red Bull Racing Team<\/p>\n

Jayce Illman \/ Getty Images<\/p>\n

Lance Stroll, Aston Martin Racing, Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin Racing\"Lance<\/p>\n

Lance Stroll, Aston Martin Racing, Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin Racing<\/p>\n

Simon Galloway \/ LAT Images via Getty Images<\/p>\n

Gabriel Bortoleto, Sauber, Dino Beganovic, Ferrari\"Gabriel<\/p>\n

Gabriel Bortoleto, Sauber, Dino Beganovic, Ferrari<\/p>\n

James Sutton \/ LAT Images via Getty Images<\/p>\n

Advertisement<\/p>\n

Esteban Ocon, Haas F1 Team, Oliver Bearman, Haas F1 Team\"Esteban<\/p>\n

Esteban Ocon, Haas F1 Team, Oliver Bearman, Haas F1 Team<\/p>\n

Simon Galloway \/ LAT Images via Getty Images<\/p>\n

Lewis Hamilton, Ferrari\"Lewis<\/p>\n

Lewis Hamilton, Ferrari<\/p>\n

Bryn Lennon \/ Formula 1 \/ Getty Images<\/p>\n

Alexander Albon, Williams\"Alexander<\/p>\n

Alexander Albon, Williams<\/p>\n

Simon Galloway \/ LAT Images via Getty Images<\/p>\n

Lance Stroll, Aston Martin Racing, Esteban Ocon, Haas F1 Team\"Lance<\/p>\n

Lance Stroll, Aston Martin Racing, Esteban Ocon, Haas F1 Team<\/p>\n

Rudy Carezzevoli \/ Getty Images<\/p>\n

Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing, Andrea Kimi Antonelli, Mercedes\"Max<\/p>\n

Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing, Andrea Kimi Antonelli, Mercedes<\/p>\n

Peter Fox \/ Getty Images<\/p>\n

Charles Leclerc, Ferrari\"Charles<\/p>\n

Charles Leclerc, Ferrari<\/p>\n

Bryn Lennon \/ Formula 1 \/ Getty Images<\/p>\n

Advertisement<\/p>\n

Pierre Gasly, Alpine, Franco Colapinto, Alpine\"Pierre<\/p>\n

Pierre Gasly, Alpine, Franco Colapinto, Alpine<\/p>\n

Sam Bagnall \/ Sutton Images via Getty Images<\/p>\n

Oliver Bearman, Haas F1 Team\"Oliver<\/p>\n

Oliver Bearman, Haas F1 Team<\/p>\n

Jayce Illman \/ Getty Images<\/p>\n

Pierre Gasly, Alpine, Franco Colapinto, Alpine\"Pierre<\/p>\n

Pierre Gasly, Alpine, Franco Colapinto, Alpine<\/p>\n

Rudy Carezzevoli \/ Getty Images<\/p>\n

Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing, Carlos Sainz, Williams\"Max<\/p>\n

Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing, Carlos Sainz, Williams<\/p>\n

Peter Fox \/ Getty Images<\/p>\n

Race start\"Race<\/p>\n

Race start<\/p>\n

Ozan Kose \/ AFP via Getty Images<\/p>\n

Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing, Liam Lawson, Racing Bulls Team, Carlos Sainz, Williams\"Max<\/p>\n

Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing, Liam Lawson, Racing Bulls Team, Carlos Sainz, Williams<\/p>\n

Mark Thompson – Getty Images<\/p>\n

Advertisement<\/p>\n

Oliver Bearman, Haas F1 Team, Franco Colapinto, Alpine\"Oliver<\/p>\n

Oliver Bearman, Haas F1 Team, Franco Colapinto, Alpine<\/p>\n

Andrew Ferraro \/ LAT Images via Getty Images<\/p>\n

Yuki Tsunoda, Red Bull Racing Team\"Yuki<\/p>\n

Yuki Tsunoda, Red Bull Racing Team<\/p>\n

Mark Thompson – Getty Images<\/p>\n

Oscar Piastri, McLaren\"Oscar<\/p>\n

Oscar Piastri, McLaren<\/p>\n

Rudy Carezzevoli \/ Getty Images<\/p>\n

Nico Hulkenberg, Sauber, Franco Colapinto, Alpine\"Nico<\/p>\n

Nico Hulkenberg, Sauber, Franco Colapinto, Alpine<\/p>\n

Mark Sutton \/ Formula 1 via Getty Images<\/p>\n

To read more Motorsport.com articles visit our website<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"After crashing in qualifying for the Formula 1 Azerbaijan Grand Prix, Franco Colapinto revealed that he would rather…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":151074,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[36],"tags":[2592,69415,1687,69416,372,6537,2356,1666,3723,19579,3006,14248,371,101,56,54,55],"class_list":{"0":"post-151073","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-f1","8":"tag-aston-martin-racing","9":"tag-colapinto","10":"tag-f1","11":"tag-f1-qualifying","12":"tag-formula-1","13":"tag-formula1","14":"tag-franco-colapinto","15":"tag-getty-images","16":"tag-haas-f1-team","17":"tag-kimi-antonelli","18":"tag-max-verstappen","19":"tag-pierre-gasly","20":"tag-red-bull-racing","21":"tag-sports","22":"tag-uk","23":"tag-united-kingdom","24":"tag-unitedkingdom"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/151073","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=151073"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/151073\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/151074"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=151073"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=151073"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=151073"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}