Colapinto fitness to be evaluated pre-race after 50G qualifying crash

Williams driver Franco Colapinto faces a pre-race fitness evaluation after a 50G impact with a concrete wall during qualifying for the Las Vegas Grand Prix.

The Argentine was on course to set a time good enough for Q3 when he clipped the inside wall at Turn 13 – the last of a sequence that takes drivers away from the Strip – which sent him into the outside barrier at unabated speed.

A sickening impact saw the car leave the ground before skating several hundred metres down the track towards the final corner, bringing an end to the second segment of qualifying.

Following an initial assessment at the medical centre due to the high-G impact, Williams revealed in a statement that the rookie would face a second test before the race on Saturday night local time.

“During qualifying Franco sustained a significant impact of over 50G, requiring a medical check-up,” it said.

“An impact of this magnitude is obviously significant and severe and he will need to be evaluated again tomorrow before we will know whether he is clear to race.

“Franco’s health is all that matters and we are glad he is otherwise OK. We will provide further updates when we can.”

It is the latest in a string of hugely costly incidents for the Williams team under the cost cap era, which could further influence its development ability into the new season.

Alex Albon’s crash in Australian GP practice left the team with just one chassis left for the rest of that weekend, while Logan Sargeant effectively sealed his fate in being dropped for Colapinto with a fiery, high-speed crash at Zandvoort.

Colapinto came in with damage costs rising but the team has seen wrecked race cars on five occasions in the past three events alone – Albon crashing heavily after contact with Oliver Bearman in Mexico, before both drivers destroyed their cars in Brazil, Colapinto doing so in both qualifying and the race.

Aside from the financial burden of the latest crash as well as the reserve of usable parts again being eaten into, mechanics face another long stretch of work to repair the car in time for the 50-lap grand prix in the midst of two triple-header weekends to finish the season.