Franco Colapinto Slapped with Grid Penalty Following Baku Mishap
Franco Colapinto faces a five-place grid penalty for the Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia after a collision at the Baku City Circuit. The incident involved his teammate Pierre Gasly and McLaren's Lando Norris.
Franco Colapinto finds himself in hot water following a tangle at the Baku City Circuit that left both his Alpine teammate Pierre Gasly and McLaren's Lando Norris out of the race. Colapinto's ambitious move at Turn 1 during a Safety Car restart went awry, resulting in a collision that has now earned him a five-place grid penalty for the upcoming Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia.
The stewards, after a thorough review of the incident, deemed Colapinto "wholly or predominantly to blame" for the tangle. Their decision was to convert the standard 10-second time penalty into a grid drop since Colapinto was unable to serve it, having retired from the race. This decision aligns with Article B1.9.6.(e) of the FIA 2026 F1 Regulations.
The stewards’ report detailed how Colapinto approached Gasly from behind at Turn 1, braking too late and entering at a speed that left no room for a controlled maneuver. The result was inevitable contact with Gasly, who then collided with Norris, leading to the retirement of both drivers. The stewards noted the absence of any mitigating factors from other drivers that could have softened Colapinto's penalty.
Colapinto, understandably contrite, issued apologies to Gasly, Norris, and his Alpine team. "Just a big sorry to all of them, to the factory, to Pierre of course," he lamented, acknowledging the lost opportunity for both Alpines to score points. "I did a big mistake," he added, reflecting on the gravity of the situation.
Gasly, taking a more diplomatic approach, expressed his disappointment but focused on moving forward. "We'll manage it together as a team," he said, recognizing the solid race pace both cars had before the incident.
Norris, however, was less forgiving in his assessment, quipping that some drivers shouldn't be in F1, clearly frustrated by the early end to his race.
As the paddock turns its attention to Malaysia, Colapinto will be working to put this incident behind him and focus on a clean race weekend. But with the grid penalty looming, the uphill battle at Sepang is set to be a challenging one for the Argentine driver.