In the midst of the consecration of Max Verstappen at the Las Vegas Grand Prix, the Argentine driver Franco Colapinto returned to star in a worthy performance by finishing in fourteenth position after living a complicated weekend with a significant accident during qualifying.
After the end of the competition, it was himself James Vowlesteam leader Williamswho spoke about the performance that the 21-year-old had on the street circuit of the North American city and highlighted his performance without first congratulating the Dutch champion: “Las Vegas is over. First and foremost, congratulations to Max Verstappena well-deserved four-time world champion.”
Regarding Williams’ performance, the manager acknowledged the difficulties from the beginning: “In terms of our weekend, it was difficult from start to finish.” Despite the blow to 50G (G force) that Colapinto suffered, Vowles stressed that the most important thing for him is the health of the pilot: “Your health is more important to me than anything else. Carbon and cars can be rebuilt, but your health cannot.”
Colapinto, despite the accident, showed determination and commitment, according to Vowles: “This morning he came wanting to drive and run. “He had the approval and he did a great job during the grand prix.” At the same time, he considered that starting from the pits presented a challenge, but the team used the race to experiment and learn: “It was difficult, we were able to make up a few positionsbut we had a good experiment with the car, with a small difference, it is good learning for the future.”
Regarding the accident, Franco Colapinto shared how he experienced that moment: “I was half dumb when I got out of the car, I was half drugged, stupid. “I didn’t know what was happening,” he said in the mixed zone after withstanding a force of 50G. Despite this, the Argentine driver showed his love for street circuits, stating that He likes “street circuits a lot” and “going close to walls.” It should be noted that on urban tracks, such as Baku in Azerbaijan, he has already shown his potential by obtaining his first points after finishing eighth.
With two grand prizes still to be competed for, the Pilar native will continue seeking to stand out and consolidate his future in F1. The next challenge will be in Qatar on December 1, followed by the season finale at the Yas Marina Circuit on December 8.
Finally, Vowles also addressed the abandonment of Alex Albon due to technical problems: “As for Alex, he was in that strong position to score points before we suffered an overheating problem. The car was actually heating up lap by lap.something probably went wrong with our cooling system.” At the same time, he acknowledged the frustration of leaving points along the way: “It’s difficult when you leave points on the table with both cars“But you win championships when you have to execute cleanly every weekend, and we’re just not doing that right now.”
For Williams, the remaining races are an opportunity to optimize learning: “We have two races to make sure we optimize our learning for the future. I hope so. It was a very long, very difficult season, but it is one that will make us stronger for the future,” Vowles concluded.
