Franco Colapinto will remain behind the wheel for Alpine during this weekend’s British Grand Prix, the team has confirmed. Initially signed for a five-race deal, the Argentine’s contract expired after last week's Austrian GP, but Alpine has extended his seat — at least for now.
Colapinto stepped into the role after Jack Doohan underwhelmed during the season’s opening races. Doohan's best qualifying result was 11th, and he managed no better than 13th in races. After a leadership change within Alpine — with Oliver Oakes stepping down and motorsport veteran Flavio Briatore stepping in as Executive Advisor — Colapinto, one of Briatore’s protégés, took over the second seat alongside Pierre Gasly.
So far, Colapinto has recorded two 13th-place finishes and started once from 10th on the grid. Speaking ahead of Silverstone, he said: “I experienced my first FP1 session here last year. It’s exciting to return and race. Spending time with the team between back-to-back race weekends has been great.”
The 22-year-old will mark his 15th Grand Prix appearance at Silverstone. Alpine will then take a three-week break before making a final decision on whether to keep him in the seat for the rest of the season — starting with the Belgian GP.