As Franco Colapinto has impressed the Formula 1 paddock at Williams as a mid-season replacement for Logan Sargeant, there has been plenty of calls to keep him on the grid for 2025.
But with no room at the Grove-based squad, as Carlos Sainz comes in alongside Alex Albon, the team has been aiming to help the Argentine find a spot elsewhere.
Over recent weeks speculation linking him to Red Bull has grown stronger, as pressure continues to mount on Sergio Perez while the team’s junior programme remains disjointed.
So, would Colapinto to Red Bull actually work? Our writers provide their takes.
Why Colapinto partnering Verstappen isn’t as crazy as it sounds – Alex Kalinauckas
What a journey Franco Colapinto has been on in not even three months of Formula 1. From relative obscurity in Formula 2, to being a candidate to partner Max Verstappen at Red Bull in 2025. Such a bold move would be typical Red Bull driver crowbarring, but it’s not quite as out there as it might seem.
First off, there has been genuine consideration within the Red Bull camp for such a move. It is understood to be something team principal Christian Horner is pushing rather than coming from Red Bull motorsport advisor Helmut Marko, who understandably wants Liam Lawson promoted to benefit the Red Bull Junior Team.
But that previously well-oiled machine is now jammed to the extent it’s clearly broken. Adding Colapinto in at the top would allow time for it to be repaired, with Lawson still given a chance to shine in F1 anyway.
A bigger problem for Red Bull to overcome in any move for Colapinto – at either of its squads – is Williams’s asking price. Rumours have this at $20 million, with Red Bull uninterested in a loan deal for the Argentine.
Colapinto has attracted plenty of support in South America
Photo by: Zak Mauger / Motorsport Images
But, if a deal can be struck, the upsides are considerable for Red Bull.
It is already facing a $20m hit to its prize money for 2024 – given it’s on-track to finish third in the constructors’ championship this year thanks to Sergio Perez failing to get anywhere near close enough to Verstappen, rather than winning as it did in 2022 and 2023. Colapinto also brings sponsors, as Williams is currently enjoying, and massive interest from Latin America.
At the Mexican GP, this writer saw reporters from media outlets in that market arranged several ranks deep every time Colapinto spoke. Plus, interested…
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