Argentine
Franco Colapinto is the Argentine racer whose climb through FIA Formula 3 and Formula 2 carried the hopes of a country that had been without a Formula 1 driver for two decades, and who turned a mid-pack junior CV into a surprise grand prix debut.
Formula 3
Colapinto stepped up to FIA Formula 3 in 2022 with Van Amersfoort Racing and announced himself immediately, taking pole on debut at Sakhir before claiming a maiden win for himself and the team at Imola. He added a sprint victory at Monza and finished his rookie campaign ninth in the standings. For 2023 he switched to MP Motorsport and improved markedly, scoring five podiums including sprint wins at Silverstone and Monza to finish fourth overall. A planned Macau Grand Prix outing that year was scuppered when he broke his collarbone before the final F3 round and was replaced by Dennis Hauger.
Formula 2
Strong F3 form earned Colapinto a step up to Formula 2 with MP Motorsport, beginning with the 2023 Yas Marina finale and continuing into a full 2024 season. His standout result was a sprint-race victory at Imola; the campaign as a whole was competitive rather than title-challenging but kept him firmly on the radar of F1 teams.
After F2
That profile paid off mid-2024 when Williams handed Colapinto a Formula 1 race seat, making him the first Argentine to start a grand prix in over twenty years. He later moved within the Alpine orbit. His junior years built a reputation for raw speed and adaptability that opened the F1 door faster than his championship positions alone might have suggested.