Franco Colapinto aims to wrap up the first half of the season on a high

Argentine race driver Franco Colapinto is aiming to wrap up the first half of the Formula 1 season on a high at the Hungarian Grand Prix on Sunday, before the world’s premier racing series enters its European summer break until August. The 23-year-old is fresh off an impressive performance at last week’s Belgian GP at the track of Spa-Francorchamps, where he finished the race in 10th, adding one point to his tally. Not only that, but Colapinto completed one of the overtakes of the season. On lap 30, he followed both teammate Pierre Gasly and Racing Bull’s Liam Lawson into the Kemmel straight, before swerving right to overtake both before the next corner, with the cars going three wide at one point. However, he could be in for a tougher challenge at the Hungaroring, in Budapest, with Alpine being the only one of the 11 F1 teams not to bring any updates to their car. This could see the team’s performance drop when compared to close rivals. Colapinto’’s preparation for this week’s race has already hit a big bump. The Argentine driver had to sit out Free Practice 1 and hand over his car, as the team chose the race to give rookie Estonian Paul Aron, part of the series’ initiative to give reserve drivers time with F1 machinery. Aron finished in 19th place, some three seconds behind the session leader, Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc. Colapinto’s first run with the car in FP2 didn’t go much better, with the Argentine crashing heavily backward into the barriers, triggering a red flag and finishing the session in P21. Colapinto’s track record at Hungary Colapinto has built a solid track record at the Hungaroring, achieving several podiums during his junior career across Formula 3 and Formula 2. His best result was undoubtedly a 2nd place finish in the 2022 F3 sprint race, driving for Van Amersfoort Racing. In a wet-track race, Colapinto took the lead at the first turn and managed an electrical issue to secure the second-place finish.  He also had a 3rd place in the 2023 F3 main race with MP Motorsport.  Regardless, his 18th place at the 2025 F1 Hungarian GP leaves a lot of room for improvement, as a strong P14 in Saturday’s qualifying unraveled on Sunday due to a poor opening lap combined with several pit stop delays, relegating him to the back of the grid. Monaco without walls The Hungarian track is one of F1’s trickier venues. Its notoriously tight, twisty, and punishing turns require a steady hand from the driver, giving it the nickname of “Monaco without walls.”  Overtaking is extremely difficult at the track, meaning a good time on Saturday’s qualifying and a solid pit stop strategy are key to advance on the grid. It won’t be the best track for Colapinto’s Alpine A526. Throughout the season, the car has struggled on slow circuits due to an unstable rear end. The car is highly susceptible to sudden losses of rear grip, as highlighted by Paul Aron’s double slide at the end of his session and Colapinto’s heavy FP2 crash. The Argentine driver will have to find a setup that allows him to push for one lap in qualifying, then go on a long and grueling race on Sunday, becoming essentially a roadblock for faster cars behind him as he defends track position and waits for any interruption to normal racing to enter the pits. Cover image: BWT Alpine Formula One Team // TWJB Photography