Franco Colapinto names which current F1 driver he ‘always’ supported while growing up in Argentina

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Franco Colapinto became the first Argentinian to race in Formula 1 since 2001 at the Italian Grand Prix.

The 21-year-old was drafted in at Williams for the remainder of the 2024 season after several incidents and crashes for Logan Sargeant led to his sacking following the Dutch Grand Prix.

In just his first three races in the pinnacle of motorsport, Colapinto has caught everyone’s attention. Going from 18th to 12th on his debut at Monza, the Argentine grabbed his first points at Baku as he came home eighth behind teammate Alex Albon in seventh.

Last time out in Singapore, Colapinto made an ambitious divebomb at turn one at the start of the race to move into the points, but he ultimately finished just outside in 11th after he was undercut during the pit stops.

With such impressive performances in a short space of time, Colapinto is giving his fellow compatriots every reason to cheer, especially given that he is the first Argentinian to race in F1 in over 20 years. In fact, the 21-year-old was born two years after Gaston Mazzacane made his final appearance in F1 at the 2001 San Marino Grand Prix.

Subsequently, Colapinto had no fellow Argentinian to look up to, but there was one current driver that he did follow closely, and it may not be the one many may have thought of.

Franco Colapinto was ‘always supporting’ Sergio Perez growing up

Speaking on The Fast and the Curious Podcast, Colapinto revealed that Red Bull driver Sergio Perez was the driver he grew up watching in Argentina.

Perez began his career with Sauber in 2011 and his brilliant performances with the Swiss team earned him a move to McLaren in 2013, but he struggled badly with the Woking squad.

READ MORE: Red Bull driver Sergio Perez’s life outside F1 from net worth to nickname

Spending the next seven seasons with Force India, later Racing Point, the Mexican signed with Red Bull in 2021 and has since been considerably outperformed by world champion teammate Max Verstappen.

For Colapinto, Perez was the one he was ‘always supporting’ as a child as he was the closest to having a role model to look up to from his home nation.

“Of course, it’s been a very long time since, I was not even born when the last Argentinian drove in Formula 1,” he said. “I would have loved, when I was a kid to have someone from my country to be able to support.

“I was waking up in the mornings, I had Checo Perez. He was the closest to me and I was always supporting him, but I didn’t have no one from my home country.

“It’s great that now it’s me the one that is there and that I am the one the people from my home country are able to support and are able to cheer for.”

Franco Colapinto is in the running for the vacant Sauber seat

Colapinto’s performances at Williams have led many to speculate where the Argentinian will end up come the end of the year. With Albon and Carlos Sainz confirmed for 2025 onwards, the 21-year-old is staring at the prospect of returning to Formula 2.

Colapinto is reportedly a candidate for the vacant Sauber seat alongside Nico Hulkenberg next year. Talks have been confirmed between the two parties, with Williams boss James Vowles open to loaning Colapinto out to Sauber to develop him over a full campaign.

However, the Argentine is not the only option as Mattia Binotto is left with a headache as who he will choose for the second seat among a plethora of drivers. Valtteri Bottas is the favourite to retain his seat, but the Finn’s contract demands may play into the hands of the other candidates.

F2 title contender Gabriel Bortoleto is also a driver in the running for the Sauber seat but McLaren will be unwilling to let the Brazilian leave permanently. As the United States Grand Prix looms, everyone is still wondering who will end up in that Sauber seat, and indeed Audi come 2026.