Franco Colapinto, careful not to overdo it
For his second F1 Grand Prix, Franco Colapinto reached Q3. He even beat his team-mate in Azerbaijan. A surprising result given his lack of experience. With adrenalin flowing, you don't want to spoil everything.
We did not expect that. Especially for his second Grand Prix. In Baku, Franco Colapinto finished in ninth place in qualifying. A very good result for this young driver who placed his wheels here for the first time.
This performance erases his mistake from Monza, where he had the opportunity to reach Q2. Going too wide at the second Lesmo prevented him from doing so.
In Azerbaijan, the challenge was on paper tougher, given the layout of the circuit. But the Argentine showed what he was capable of. Apart from a mistake during Friday’s practice sessions, the Williams driver has often been in pace and close to his teammate. He demonstrated it in qualifying.
Regaining confidence
Reaching Q3 in only my second qualifying session in F1 is an incredible sensation for me and for the team. I didn’t expect to reach Q3, as I have only been progressing session after session. The car has been up to the task since the start of the weekend and I feel more and more comfortable with the car and learning a new circuit », he says.
« I think we optimized almost all the runs we did today. We had a difficult start yesterday, but we did a good job of turning things around. It was important to reinforce my confidence after the accident on the first day, especially on a street circuit. My mistake in FP1 prevented me from doing a long run, which could hurt me tomorrow, but I think we can do our preparation tonight and understand where I can improve. I am proud of what we have already achieved together, as this is just the beginning and there are still many races ahead. Let’s see what we can do tomorrow.
Watch out for the walls.
With such a result, he will have to control his adrenaline and his desire to do well. He has here the opportunity to score his first points and to prove to his bosses that they made the right choice. But for that, he will have to achieve perfection. He will have to keep the car on the track. Otherwise, it’s heading towards the wall. In a few moments, he could go from hero to zero.
So if it means slowing down a little, with the risk of not finishing in the points, it would be better to choose this option than pushing hard and ending up in a wall on your second Grand Prix.
