Flavio Briatore sets deadline for Alpine’s driver line-up decision
Franco Colapinto has so far failed to recapture the early career form he showed at the start of his Williams stint.
Alpine executive adviser Flavio Briatore said the team will wait until November to make a final decision about their 2026 driver lineup.
Pierre Gasly’s place was confirmed recently after he signed a new deal keeping him at the team until 2028 but Franco Colapinto’s future is a lot less certain.
Flavio Briatore sets final deadline for Alpine driver decision
Alpine started the year with Gasly and rookie Jack Doohan but soon demoted the Australian after paying a sizeable fee to bring Colapinto to the team from Williams.
Hoping to recapture the form that saw the Argentine driver score five points with Williams, Colapinto is instead the only driver currently on the grid who has yet to score a point.
The confidence of the 22-year-old will have taken a knock after Briatore said he has not been as “expected” but he has now been given a stay of execution with the Italian saying no decision for 2026 has been made yet.
“For the moment, I believe Franco is doing a good job,” Briatore told Sky Sports. “He was a bit inexperienced in the beginning, like a lot of the rookies, young drivers.
“Now, in the last three, four races, he’s much more consistent, no mistakes and maybe it’s Franco, maybe we see.
“We have another four or five races to choose and that’s when we’ll see. It is November, we need to make a decision.”
Alpine had been linked with the experienced Valtteri Bottas and Sergio Perez but the duo have instead joined new outfit Cadillac ahead of their 2026 entry.
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Briatore insisted though, that Alpine were never seriously considering either of the pair.
“No, really. I talked with a lot of people,” he said at a press conference at the Dutch GP. “I talked with Bottas as well.
“We talked with Toto [Wolff] as well at the time, but really, there was never a discussion for Bottas to drive for Alpine. I think so Alpine helped Bottas a little bit to sign the contract with Cadillac. We did some marketing. But this is the reason, honestly.
“I like Valtteri because he’s a super driver and what Toto says is exactly the same. He was unlucky to be in Mercedes at the same time as Lewis [Hamilton], when Lewis was really at the peak of his driving.
“We have a different idea, but it’s nice to have Valtteri back. It’s nice to have a driver back with a lot of experience, but I’m looking for something else.”
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