Alpine shocked the entire F1 community on January 9 by announcing the signing of Franco Colapinto as a reserve driver on a multi-year deal. As the Enstone-based team already has two reserve drivers — Paul Aron and Ryo Hirakawa — with them for 2025, this news sparked speculations about a possible mid-season exit for Jack Doohan with Colapinto taking his seat.
As for that, both Alpine and Williams confirmed in their press releases that Colapinto will serve as the French team’s test and reserve driver. However, The Race’s Scott Mitchell-Malm and Edd Straw have analyzed that this arrangement may be a lot more complex than it seems, and the Argentine may still have ties with the Grove-based outfit.
On taking a closer look at the press releases of both sides, they pointed out that Alpine have just secured the “services” of Colapinto, who may still be contracted to Williams.
“The news has been slightly strangely worded,” Mitchell-Malm said on the Race F1 podcast. “Both teams have said they’ve entered into an agreement for Alpine to secure the services of Franco Colapinto on a multi-year deal”.
VAMOS FRANCO
He joins us on a multi-year deal. Franco will be our Reserve Driver for 2025
— BWT Alpine Formula One Team (@AlpineF1Team) January 9, 2025
“There is something that still reflects the fact that Williams owns him now. Doesn’t necessarily even mean he’s got the underlying contract but it could be that there’s some sponsorship-related stuff”, he added.
Alpine had been toying around the idea of signing Colapinto, but couldn’t do so because they had Doohan already on board with a full-time contract for 2025. As for the Williams Academy driver, he did not get a seat at any other team including Williams, who already had their line-up set with Carlos Sainz and Alex Albon.
However, the Grove-based outfit also did not wish to lose on a talent like the 21-year-old, so they retained him as a reserve. Mitchell-Malm believes that Alpine may have just secured the services of Colapinto for a few years and then the Argentine may go back to Williams.
How can Williams benefit from such a deal?
While there is no certainty about what are the terms of the agreement between Alpine and Williams, the Grove-based outfit could benefit massively if what Mitchell-Malm claimed is true. Such a deal could help Colapinto get some experience under his belt at Alpine, and Williams will not lose out on a driver, who can be a huge asset to them in the future.
As for Williams, they may want to keep hold of Colapinto for more reasons than just his driving abilities on the race track. After the Argentine’s nine-race cameo last year, he became a huge fan favorite, especially in South America.
Colapinto’s popularity may help Williams attract a lot more lucrative sponsorship deals, which could be useful in helping them gather the finances they need to develop the car and invest in other things that may help them return to the front of the field.
Nonetheless, it is important to note that all these are just speculations and only time will tell what sort of an agreement Alpine and Williams have reached for Colapinto.
