Why Flavio Briatore is “not happy at all” with Franco Colapinto

Alpine executive advisor Flavio Briatore has admitted he’s “not happy at all” with Franco Colapinto following a tough return to F1.

After the Miami Grand Prix, Jack Doohan was replaced by Colapinto at Alpine.

Colapinto has been part of the Alpine stable since the start of the year, having joined as test and reserve driver.

The Argentine starred during his short stint with Williams last year after stepping in for Logan Sargeant.

However, since returning to the sport with Alpine, Colapinto has failed to impress.

Briatore, who’s renowned for his brutal driver decisions over the years, conceded he’s not satisfied with Colapinto’s current level of performance.

“If I were to say now that I was happy, it would be a lie. I’m not happy at all. Now we have to see how the season develops for him,” the Italian told Sky Germany.

“Of course, we also have to recognise that Franco is very young and has a lot of pressure from all directions, not only from Argentina. Now he has gradually found his way into it.

“Franco is strong enough. In this job, you need to be able to regain your confidence as quickly as possible. So I hope he gets it done quickly and gets on track.”

Colapinto’s Alpine F1 future

When Colapinto was announced as Doohan’s replacement, Alpine outlined that he was on just a five-race deal.

Since then, Briatore has disputed this claim.

With Alpine at the back of the field in 2025 as they wait for Mercedes power next year, Briatore admitted it’s a year he can “experiment” with drivers.

Alpine have Paul Aron as part of their junior academy, while Sergio Perez and Valtteri Bottas are available for 2026.

“Races,” he said. “I don’t know, honestly. I never tell five races, three races, four races, one race. We see.

“If Colapinto is performing, he’s driving the car. If not, we’ll see. 2025 is a year we need to prepare ourselves for 2026. So whatever experiment I need doing, we’re doing.

“I don’t know at this moment if Franco will stay for the season or not, but let’s see. Depends on the performance. We’re only looking at the performance - nothing else.”