Franco Colapinto shares what’s ‘very hard’ about working with Flavio Briatore and addresses his Alpine future

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Alpine driver Franco Colapinto is one of a handful of Formula 1 drivers who are still unsure whether he’ll be on the grid next season.

Mercedes, Red Bull and Racing Bulls are the three other teams on the grid who, like Alpine, have yet to confirm their 2026 driver line-up.

Pierre Gasly signed a long-term contract extension before the Italian Grand Prix, with Franco Colapinto still at risk of dropping off the grid.

The Argentinian was promoted into a race seat at the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix in place of Jack Doohan, with the Australian seemingly having no way back onto the grid.

Flavio Briatore recently declared that the race for Alpine’s second seat is between Colapinto and Paul Aron, with the next seven Grand Prix weekends likely to be pivotal to the 22-year-old F1’s future.

Colapinto was told by Briatore when he replaced Doohan that he needed to be fast, score points and avoid crashing, and unfortunately, he still sits at the bottom of the drivers’ championship without troubling the scorers.

Briatore’s decision to declare Alpine’s second seat as a two-horse race has been criticised, but Colapinto has now addressed his relationship with the veteran Italian team boss.

READ MORE: Who is Alpine 2025 F1 driver Franco Colapinto? Everything you need to know

Franco Colapinto says Flavio Briatore will put Alpine ‘back at the top’ of Formula 1

Colapinto was being interviewed on the Beyond The Grid Podcast and was asked about working alongside Briatore.

He explained: “I have a very good relationship [with Flavio].

“[We speak] Italian, you have to! It’s not allowed [to speak English].

“He is hard with everyone, and his way of making the team work and making people motivated can be very hard, and sometimes it can feel a little bit too much if you don’t know him.

“But, he is a person and someone I really believe in and someone that I believe is going to move this team forward, and he’s going to put Alpine back at the top.

“So, I learned a lot from him this year. He made me a lot stronger, mentally.

“I do believe that years like this, when it starts to become better and when we start to win, to have good results, to be fighting at the top, it’s what makes a difference.

“So, I’m very grateful for the opportunity, of course, he gave me, but also for all this process you know that we are going through.”

READ MORE: Who is Alpine’s F1 executive adviser Flavio Briatore? Everything to know

Franco Colapinto shares insight into his Alpine future as contract decision looms

Colapinto was then asked about his future beyond 2025, as he’s still not signed a contract for next season, and he explained: “I’m not really focused too much on that.

“I think I want to keep building on this year. There is more to learn, and I have much more to find, but I’m feeling better in the car, in the team, and I’m feeling that we are doing a good job all together.

“Of course, it’s no secret that the car is not where we want to be, and it’s not good enough at the moment to be in the points, but there will come a time when it is, and I want to be ready for that.

“So, that to me is the main focus at the moment, to go race by race and moment by moment and yeah, let’s see where we end up.

“But, just happy to be here and let’s see how it continues this chapter.”

Colapinto was originally placed on a race-by-race deal by Alpine, piling the pressure on the young driver.

Briatore later admitted this might have been a mistake, but his performances over recent weeks have been far stronger.

Colapinto has outqualified Gasly at three of the last four races, and his long-run pace has been a match for the one-time race winner.

The only unknown for those outside of Alpine is what Aron is doing behind the scenes to convince Briatore that he deserves a chance next season.