Franco Colapinto admits simple way he lacks ‘two or three tenths’ to Alex Albon

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Franco Colapinto has been very impressive since he made his Formula 1 debut at the Italian Grand Prix for Williams.

The Argentinian driver was thrown in at very short notice to replace Logan Sargeant at Williams after the American didn’t perform to the car’s potential and was comfortably beaten by teammate Alex Albon.

Colapinto was immediately on the pace at Monza, gathering experience in practice before making a slight mistake in qualifying at Lesmo 2 which cost him a place in Q2.

He has driven well in his first three races, even scoring points at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix while adjusting to a very difficult street circuit.

Colapinto has also been able to keep up with his more experienced teammate Albon, finishing just two seconds behind the London-born Thai driver in Azerbaijan.

Despite his good start, Colapinto is aware he has work to do to match Albon and outlined the key reasons for his deficiencies when speaking to the Corazon de F1 YouTube channel.

Franco Colapinto feels he lacks ‘two or three-tenths’ of a second to Alex Albon due to Williams’ steering wheel

Since racing in F1, Colapinto has driven well with the Argentinian looking at home in Formula 1’s midfield and making decisive overtakes. Since driving for Williams, Colapinto has even impressed 2009 F1 champion Jenson Button.

But Formula 1 cars are a step up from any junior category and a big part of that is the amount of fine adjustments required on the steering wheel.

READ MORE: Franco Colapinto pinpoints the moment he ‘knew’ he was ready to race in Formula 1

An F1 steering wheel is a lot more complicated than the Formula 2 steering wheel Colapinto started the year with at MP Motorsport.

So, Colapinto admits he lacks experience and the 21-year-old needs to maximise the tools in Williams’ car to keep up his performance over a race distance.

He said: “I lack a lot of experience. I think that knowing how to use well all the tools and everything you can to tune the car, the balance of the car with things you can do from the steering wheel, are two or three-tenths that comes from experience and with time.

“They are things that I have to continue learning, so there is much to improve. But I’m really happy [and] calm. I’m enjoying [F1] and I’m not thinking about the future or anything.

“The truth is I’m focused on this year, what I have to do [and] what the team wants. And I’m sure good things will come in the future.”

Franco Colapinto is a candidate to race in Formula 1 next year at Sauber

Colapinto won’t be able to race for Williams next season as the British team have committed to Albon and Spaniard Carlos Sainz.

There may be other options for the Argentinian, though, as Sauber haven’t signed a teammate for incoming German driver Nico Hulkenberg.

Colapinto is a candidate, although Juan Pablo Montoya has doubts over whether Sauber need a young driver before being taken over by Audi in 2026.

He will need to keep up his good performances this weekend at the United States Grand Prix, dealing with another new track and the intricacies of an F1 Sprint weekend.