Franco Colapinto drove brilliantly at the Singapore GP but also struggled with the grueling weather conditions which often make the outings at Marina Bay quite tough. Having never raced in Singapore before, Colapinto suffered from stomach pain during the race. Williams’ boss James Vowles spoke about the same after the race.
Speaking to Sky Sports F1’s Ted Kravitz, Vowles said, “It’s a tough race. He is a little bit dehydrated and that’s what caused it. But he’s good, he’s back up on his feet and happy and smiling.”
A mega effort from Franco in tough conditions out here in Singapore pic.twitter.com/NHw2ZDY5J0
— Williams Racing (@WilliamsRacing) September 22, 2024
It wasn’t a surprise that Colapinto, who is a rookie, experienced such issues during the race. The Singapore GP is often one of the hottest races of the season, and the 3 mile layout with multiple tricky corners adds to the challenging nature of the race. It also turns out to be the longest race of the season, hitting the two-hour limit most times.
Thus, all drivers struggle a lot with the heat and humidity as the temperatures in their cockpits can go up to 60°C. This can easily cause drivers to have dehydration and lose concentration. Colapinto did exceptionally well to avoid that and finished the race in P11.
The Argentine was looking good to score points for a second consecutive weekend, in what was only his third Grand Prix. But he missed out on P10 by a minimal difference of 1.6 seconds after a race-long battle with Sergio Perez.
Colapinto is making a name for himself
The start of the Singapore GP got Colapinto a lot of spotlight on him, as he made an audacious move on Alex Albon. The Thai-British driver was startled and also initially deemed it a “divebomb” move. While Albon retired on lap 16 itself due to a power unit overheating issue, Colapinto was running in the top 10.
The Argentine driver made life difficult for Sergio Perez, as the Mexican struggled to overtake him for several laps. The 21-year-old earned praise from the six-time Grand Prix winner, who described him as “very good” for making the pass so challenging. However, Colapinto eventually lost out during the pitstop phase, with Perez and Red Bull successfully executing an undercut to claim P10.
A hard fought battle out on track between Franco and Checo pic.twitter.com/hzlyjimSMj
— Williams Racing (@WilliamsRacing) September 23, 2024
It has been a while since a teammate has outperformed Albon in this manner. While the #23 driver will certainly look to bounce back in Austin, Colapinto has made a name for himself and vindicated Vowles‘ decision to bring him in place of Logan Sargeant.
His performances in Baku and Singapore have made him a contender for a full-time seat at Sauber (soon-to-be Audi) for the 2025 season. Time will tell whether he lands that seat or not with multiple drivers like Valtteri Bottas and Gabriel Bortoleto in contention.
