Colapinto after Australian GP: Need to grasp energy, car workings | OneFootball

It was a difficult Sunday for Franco Colapinto. Unlike 2025, not because of Alpine, which is much stronger - although far from what was shown in the preseason - but due to the penalty imposed by the race stewards that forced him to race from far behind. Even so, he achieved a more than commendable 14th place in the Australian GP and, upon getting out of the car, shared his feelings.

Regarding the penalty, a stop-and-go that seemed too harsh for the reason it was based on (a starting procedure infraction that wasn't detailed much), Fran commented: "A stop and go, it's crazy... A shame, I think the team touched the car with 15 seconds to go. I didn't quite understand and I haven't seen the team yet. These are things to work on and improve."

Beyond that penalty that forced him to adopt atypical strategies, like enduring 48 laps on the same tire in hopes of taking advantage of a safety car (which never came), the driver from Pilar left a bit more at ease with the performance of the A526: "I think in terms of pace we are a bit better than in qualifying; more competitive, closer to the Haas, closer to the Audi... I think we need to understand a bit more about the energy and how the car works for qualifying. It was a long and difficult day, overall. We had a good start but then we got complicated with that (the penalty). We need to work, but I think soon we'll be a bit stronger."

Finally, recalling the tremendous maneuver to avoid Liam Lawson at the start of the race, Colapinto celebrated: "I was close to being stranded in the middle of the straight, luckily I finished the race. I think I was lucky to continue, the reflexes were good, ha."

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇪🇸 here.