Sergio Perez’s father says Franco Colapinto has done something ‘almost impossible’ this season

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Franco Colapinto continued his hugely impressive spell in Formula 1 with another points finish at the United States Grand Prix.

The Argentine driver came home to finish 10th at the Circuit of the Americas after being eliminated from Q1 in qualifying along with teammate Alex Albon. The result capped off a brilliant weekend for Colapinto as he reached the final part of qualifying for the Sprint race on Saturday, but ended up finishing 12th.

The 21-year-old’s performance at the United States Grand Prix is only the latest of his solid displays at Williams. Colapinto finished 12th on his debut at Monza after starting 18th and at Baku, he registered his first points in F1 as he finished eighth.

Colapinto narrowly missed out on points in Singapore as he came home 11th behind the Red Bull of Sergio Perez. His result in Austin now puts the Argentine on four more points than Logan Sargeant managed in almost two years at Williams.

Albon is now under pressure from Colapinto as the Thai driver was convincingly beaten by his younger teammate in Austin; a feat that Sargeant could almost never achieve.

Antonio Perez says Franco Colapinto reaching F1 as an Latino is ‘almost impossible’

Colapinto’s arrival in F1 has been met with incredible support from fans around the world and in the paddock, particularly in his home nation of Argentina.

The 21-year-old is first Argentinian to race in F1 since Gaston Mazzacane in 2001 and the first to score points in a Grand Prix since Carlos Reutemann in 1982.

READ MORE: Everything to know about Williams driver Franco Colapinto with praise to stats

This feat is especially impressive given the lack of talent that has come from Argentina, or in fact any Latino country in recent years. In fact, Red Bull’s Perez is the only other driver from that region.

And speaking with the Spanish edition of Fox Sports, Perez’s father Antonio Perez expressed his praise to Colapinto as it is ‘almost impossible’ for a Latino to reach the pinnacle of motorsport.

“Thank God we have another Latino, an Argentine; that’s two Latinos in this part,” he said.

“Being a Formula 1 driver is very difficult, but being a Formula 1 driver as a Latino is almost impossible.”

Can Franco Colapinto stay in F1 with Sauber in 2025?

Colapinto’s performances have unsurprisingly sparked debate that he should be on the grid full-time for the 2025 season.

The only issue for the Argentine is that there is not a spot available for him at Williams, as Albon and Carlos Sainz will race with the Grove-based outfit next year.

Colapinto is being linked with the last remaining seat on the grid for 2025 with Sauber, but he is facing competition from the likes of Valtteri Bottas, Mick Schumacher and Gabriel Bortoleto for the drive. However, Colapinto could earn the seat at Sauber if he can keep up his brilliant form in Mexico and Brazil.

It could even be worth it for Red Bull to take a punt on Colapinto given the poor form of Perez and the pressure he is under to keep his spot on the grid. There is no doubt Colapinto deserves a full-time drive, but where that will be is anyone’s guess.