P1racenews AI automatic summary:
Alpine Formula 1 boss Flavio Briatore has admitted to making mistakes with the rapid promotion of Franco Colapinto to a race seat and also the development of its 2025 car
Alpine Formula 1 boss Flavio Briatore has acknowledged errors in the quick promotion of Franco Colapinto to a race seat and the development of the 2025 car. During the post-summer break Dutch Grand Prix press conference, Briatore faced questions about Alpine’s last place in the championship and Colapinto’s struggling performance. Briatore hinted that promoting Colapinto to a race seat might have been premature and that the team hadn’t managed him effectively. Despite keeping Colapinto in the car after the break, Briatore expressed disappointment in Colapinto’s results. Briatore avoided a direct answer about Colapinto’s future, suggesting the driver may have been overwhelmed by the pressures of F1 and that Alpine may have underestimated the human aspect of driver management. Additionally, potential back-ups like Sergio Perez and Valtteri Bottas signed with the Cadillac team for 2026, with Briatore acknowledging that Alpine was used as leverage in Bottas’s deal, indicating uncertainty about the team’s future plans.
