Karun Chandhok warns Franco Colapinto against ‘career-damaging’ 2025 move after Sao Paulo Grand Prix crash

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Williams Racing driver Franco Colapinto had a qualifying session to forget ahead of the Sao Paulo Grand Prix.

Conditions at Interlagos were treacherous heading into the sixth Sunday qualifying session in the history of Formula 1 after conditions at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix were too wet for racing to take place after the Sprint Race.

It meant a 7:30 am start local time for the teams and media in the paddock and drivers having to put full confidence in the wet tyres during Q1.

Valtteri Bottas experimented with trying the intermediate tyres – and briefly spun as a result – and Oscar Piastri was the first driver to set a competitive lap in Q2 on the inters, conditions were exceptionally tricky throughout.

Williams driver Franco Colapinto found out the hard way how difficult racing in Formula 1 on a sodden track can be.

The 21-year-old’s crash coming out of turn three brought out the red flags that disrupted an already delayed session.

Karun Chandhok was speaking on Sky Sports F1 about the Argentinian and his future beyond this season.

Colapinto has been linked with a move to Red Bull, but Chandhok now believes that it could end up having a detrimental effect on his F1 career if he’s promoted into a top team too early.

Despite some very impressive performances, he’s still prone to making an error and has been slower than teammate Alex Albon both in Brazil and the previous race in Mexico City.

Karun Chandhok warns Franco Colapinto against 2025 Red Bull move

Colapinto took a normal line through the first corner before having to correct the rear of his car stepping out as exited turn two.

However, a momentary loss of control going through the long left-hander turn three saw Colapinto aquaplane into the barriers on the outside of the corner.

Reflecting on Colapinto’s crash and his future, Chandhok said: “He’s been a great example for anybody about how first impressions count in any job.

“He arrived with a bang, didn’t he? A great first few races but actually now when you start to get into it, you’re seeing in Mexico, he was quite some off Albon’s time, in the Sprint qualy on Friday, again some way off Albon’s time.

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“There’s a lot of rumours about putting him straight in the Red Bull, there’s a lot of excitement about putting him straight in the Red Bull.

“I think for someone this young and inexperienced dropping him straight in the Red Bull alongside Max Verstappen, could be career-damaging for him.

“He’s clearly very talented, clearly very fast, but you can’t just shortcut experience and I wonder if he would be better off biding some time in the RB and then maybe ending up in a Red Bull later on.”

Helmut Marko has Franco Colapinto concerns ahead of rumoured Red Bull move

Colapinto has been left with a nervous wait to find out whether Williams can repair his car in time to take part in Sunday’s Grand Prix.

He’s got his work cut out to add to his five points in the Drivers’ Championship as he’ll start 18th as long as he doesn’t pick up any penalties for changing components on his car after his crash.

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Christian Horner is a fan of Colapinto’s after his bright start to life in F1 with Williams who will retain the Argentinian as a reserve driver should he fail to secure a seat elsewhere on the grid.

Helmut Marko is less enthusiastic about Colapinto because he would like to continue promoting Red Bull’s own talent rather than rely on bringing in drivers from elsewhere.