Formula 1 News: Colapinto 'not up to scratch' mentally

(GMM) The jury is out as to whether Franco Colapinto (pictured) can survive in Formula 1. That’s the view of former F1 driver Nelson Piquet jr, whose own attempt to establish a F1 career collapsed spectacularly amid the infamous ‘crashgate’ affair.

Central to that scandal was Flavio Briatore, who is now heaping the pressure on 21-year-old Argentine rookie Colapinto’s shoulders as he obviously struggles to get up to speed at Alpine.

“They were tough,” Colapinto admitted in Canada, looking back on his first three races in the axed Jack Doohan’s race seat.

“They were not, of course, maybe as I was expecting. But I’ve had a good break and hopefully it brings some performance.”

Piquet, 39, admits Colapinto is a “fast driver”, but he thinks all the hype and the expectations may be too much for him.

“The really good drivers, like (Lewis) Hamilton, (Fernando) Alonso, (Max) Verstappen, don’t just stand out from the others because of their outstanding talent. The biggest difference is their minds,” he told the Pelas Piastas podcast.

“When I think about the 2024 season, I don’t think Daniel Ricciardo lost any of his talent, but he did lose his mind. And I see Colapinto in exactly the same situation now.

“Something seems to be wrong with his mind. We’re talking about a fast driver here, as he proved several times in 2024. But mentally, he doesn’t seem to be up to scratch, and in this sport, you can only prevail if you’re confident and have your mind in the right place.”

Interestingly, another highly promising rookie who has faltered more recently is Kimi Antonelli – Toto Wolff’s 18-year-old protégé at Mercedes.

“Performance wise I didn’t do that well,” the young Italian admitted in Montreal when asked about the recent triple-header of races. “Then we also had a couple of (technical) issues.

“Overall, there’s a big learning curve, especially on how to manage busier weekends. I definitely didn’t always manage things the best way. It’s been quite tough – not the way I wanted.

“George (Russell) is having a very strong season, but he can’t do everything alone. I have to be able to help the team to get back to second place.”

Liam Lawson of New Zealand and Visa Cash App Racing Bulls, Andrea Kimi Antonelli of Italy and Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 Team, and Nico Hulkenberg of Germany and Stake F1 Team Kick Sauber look on in the Drivers Press Conference during previews ahead of the F1 Grand Prix of Canada at Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve on June 12, 2025 in Montreal, Quebec. (Photo by Clive Rose/Getty Images) // Getty Images / Red Bull Content Pool //

Mercedes technical director James Allison, however, backed Antonelli to ride the storm.

“Kimi will overcome the disappointments of the last few races with his youthful optimism,” he said. “The two retirements were a pretty bitter pill for him to swallow.

“But if you put that aside and look at the situation from Kimi’s own perspective, he also knows he has more to do.”