Franco Colapinto Cites Consistency and Car Balance as Alpine Hurdles

Franco Colapinto faces an uphill battle to regain his points-scoring form after six consecutive races without scoring points, citing consistency and car balance as his primary hurdles with Alpine.

The Argentine driver has experienced an erratic Formula 1 campaign in 2026, featuring standout performances during the year followed by a difficult stretch in the season’s closing rounds. “The speed is always there, but sometimes it is the consistency: being able to repeat good weekends and feel comfortable with the car faster,” Franco Colapinto explained to the specialized site Motorsport.com.

That lack of regularity leaves him trailing teammate Pierre Gasly in the championship standings. French driver Pierre Gasly holds 42 points compared to 27 for Colapinto, a 15-point gap that shows his difficulty extracting predictable speed from the A526 chassis. Colapinto acknowledged that when the monoposto lacks proper balance, both the driver and the engineers encounter severe difficulties finding rapid solutions on race weekends.

“When everything goes well, it is very easy, but when a session gets a bit complicated, it costs us to find the reason.”

Franco Colapinto told Motorsport.com.

Bright spots exist on his 2026 resume, notably at the Miami Grand Prix where he secured eighth in qualifying and finished seventh. Two weeks later in Canada, he claimed sixth place while finishing ahead of Gasly. Yet turning those results into habit remains his stated challenge.

To bridge the performance gap, Colapinto relies heavily on late-night telemetry sessions with his engineering crew between Friday practice and Saturday qualifying. “The night from Friday to Saturday is very important to make a big step forward: it is when we analyze the data the most and find the problems that need to be improved,” Franco Colapinto detailed to Motorsport.com.

The schedule turns next toward the Las Vegas Grand Prix, with Free Practice 2 on Friday, November 20 at 01:00, followed by Free Practice 3 on Saturday, November 21 at 21:30. Fans in Argentina can follow the sessions live via Disney+ Premium, F1 TV Pro, and Fox Sports.

Despite recent setbacks including a launch issue at the São Paulo Grand Prix that hampered his start, Colapinto maintains that the French constructor has raised its overall competitive baseline. “We have improved a lot, we are better, we are more competitive and that is the most important thing,” Franco Colapinto said to Motorsport.com.

Disclaimer: The insights provided in this article are for informational and entertainment purposes only and do not constitute medical advice or sports betting recommendations.