Franco Colapinto joins BWT Alpine Formula One Team

The BWT Alpine Formula One Team have announced the signing of Franco Colapinto on a multi-year deal from Williams Racing, taking up the role of Test and Reserve Driver starting with the upcoming 2025 FIA Formula One World Championship.

Colapinto will be present at a “number of races” throughout the year and share driving duties in the Testing of Previous Cars Programme with Paul Aron and Ryo Hirakawa. He will also help the team with the driver-in-loop simulator.

Colapinto made his F1 debut in the middle of last season, replacing Logan Sargeant at Williams at the Italian Grand Prix. He scored points at the Azerbaijan race and went on to round out the season with five points from nine races.

The 21-year-old has previously raced with Van Amersfoort Racing and MP Motorsport in Formula 3, where he had a best finish of P4 in the Championship, while with MP Motorsport he finished P9 in the Championship in Formula 2.

Speaking about joining Alpine from the coming season, Franco Colapinto commented:

“I am super excited to have the opportunity to join the BWT Alpine Formula One Team. First of all, I want to say thank you to Williams for all their support from the moment I joined the Academy until the last race in Abu Dhabi. They turned my dream of racing in Formula One into reality, and I will always be grateful for that. Now, it is time for a new chapter, and to take on this challenge with the BWT Alpine Formula One Team is truly an honour. A huge thank you to Luca [de Meo], Flavio [Briatore] and Oliver [Oakes] for believing in me and welcoming me into the team with open arms. I cannot wait to get started and see where this journey takes us. Also, a massive thank you to all my sponsors and partners who stood by me through the challenges of the 2024 season. Your support made it all possible, and to my incredible fans in Argentina: ‘Muchas gracias!’ Your passion and encouragement mean the world to me. Let’s aim for even greater things in 2025 and beyond.”

Flavio Briatore, Executive Advisor, added:

“We are very pleased to come to an agreement with Williams Racing to sign Franco Colapinto. Clearly, Franco is among the best young talents in motorsport right now. It is fair to say his appearance on the Formula One grid last year caught many, me included, by surprise and his performances have been very impressive for a rookie driver. We have an eye on our future and his signing means we have a great pool of young drivers to call upon and work with in developing the team for future success.“

Also read: BWT Alpine Formula One Team join forces with Castore