Thanks to his growing popularity in Latin America, Franco Colapinto enjoyed tremendous support at the US Grand Prix last weekend. The Argentine driver took to Instagram to share a memorable encounter with one fan, who was moved to tears by his kind gesture.
Colapinto revealed that the fan in question had traveled all the way from Argentina to Texas for the race at the Circuit of the Americas — a 5,200-mile journey — just to get an autograph from her, and Colapinto did not disappoint.
“She came from Argentina to watch the race and was excited for a nice signature! I really enjoyed the weekend,” Colapinto wrote. He made time out for this young fan and signed her t-shirt, which ought to have made her weekend extremely special.
Franco Colapinto shares a heartwarming story of a fan who had come to see him all the way from Argentina during the United States Grand Prix weekend.#FrancoColapinto #USGrandPrix #Formula1 pic.twitter.com/kYiYnTe300
— Formula World (@F1_Grand_Prix) October 26, 2024
There must have been many others in the paddock who would have wanted Colapinto’s autograph, or perhaps a picture — something the 21-year-old could not have fathomed a few weeks ago. He was taking part in F2 when Williams—his parent team—called upon his services in F1 following Logan Sargeant’s mid-season sacking.
Since then, Colapinto’s popularity has skyrocketed. In the four Grand Prix races he has taken part in so far, Colapinto has scored points in two, taking his total tally to five — incredible for a driver with such little experience and preparation. As a result, his Instagram following also crossed the 3 million mark in just a matter of weeks.
This newfound fanbase has obviously been good for Colapinto, as he has secured multiple sponsorship deals, both for himself and Williams. However, it also got him into trouble after the US GP in Austin.
How Colapinto got into trouble
Colapinto is the first Argentine driver in F1 since Gastón Mazzacane in 2001, which explains why there is so much interest surrounding him. The USA is particularly close to Argentina, and also Latin America, where he has developed a strong fanbase. However, in Austin, there was proof that fame is not always a good thing.
In Austin, a sea of fans gathered to meet him on the other side of the pit wall after the Grand Prix. Colapinto, amazed to see the support, decided to greet them all. However, to do that, he had to climb up the wall separating him from the horde of supporters.
The officials around Colapinto knew what he was doing was wrong, which is why they intervened, asking him to get down. F1’s security head, Marcus, had to personally insist.
With so much crowd around, it was difficult to get the message across and then get him down, which he ultimately did. Had they not got in Colapinto’s way, maybe he would have had an even harder time finding his way out of the huge crowd that was there to bombard him with selfies and autograph requests.
