Racing
© Eterna
Franco Colapinto says his stronger 2026 form at Alpine has given him a “good starting position” for a 2027 contract, even though he still has no guarantee of a full-time Formula 1 seat next season.
After an “extremely difficult” 2025 in which he replaced Jack Doohan at Imola and failed to score a point in 18 races, Colapinto says the picture has changed markedly this year. The 23-year-old has already scored 18 points in 2026 and is much closer to teammate Pierre Gasly, trailing only 5:8 in their internal qualifying battle including Sprint qualifying.
Speaking about his future as an Alpine driver, Colapinto said: “Hopefully I don’t have to wait until the end of the season, but so far it has been a good year.”
The improvement matters because Colapinto said he “saw almost no chance” against Gasly last year, even though the Frenchman still managed 22 points in what Colapinto described as the worst car on the grid. This season, he says he is still the same driver but a more mature one after learning through difficult periods.
He also links the step forward to feeling more comfortable inside the team and in the car. Colapinto pointed to Silverstone as an example, where he started 19th after what he described as a presumed underfloor problem, overtook 10 cars and still finished in the points. He said those are the moments in which he feels stronger and more confident, and credited the team’s support.
That progress has not removed the uncertainty around either his contract or Alpine’s competitiveness. Colapinto said the team’s position has become harder in recent weeks after starting the season as a midfield leader that scored points regularly behind the top teams.
“The car isn’t fast enough at the moment, and the others are catching us very quickly,” he said. Colapinto added that he believes Racing Bulls have now moved ahead of Alpine in the midfield, leaving the team focused on making the car faster and solving its problems.
That leaves Colapinto trying to strengthen his own case while Alpine fights to recover performance. He said he wants to stay with the team for 2027, but only Gasly is confirmed so far and there have been no talks yet about his future, so his focus is simply on going race by race and continuing to score points.