Briatore blasts Colapinto's 'very poor move' after Baku crash wipes out both Alpine drivers

Alpine executive Flavio Briatore publicly condemned Franco Colapinto on Sunday after the 23-year-old Argentinian triggered a multi-car collision on the lap-36 safety-car restart at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix in Baku, wiping out team-mate Pierre Gasly and also collecting McLaren’s Lando Norris in the process.

Colapinto locked his front tyres on the dusty, low-grip inside line of the Baku street circuit and slammed into the side of Gasly, ending both Alpine drivers’ races and handing the team a damaging double DNF. The incident came at a moment when both cars were running inside the points.

“Obviously I’m extremely disappointed with the outcome of today’s race, knowing we lost valuable points in the Championship fight,” Briatore said in Alpine’s post-race statement. “These sorts of incidents shouldn’t happen, particularly when we were running well with both cars in point-scoring positions. I feel very sorry for the team and for Pierre who did a great job all weekend, and my apologies also go to Lando and McLaren for ruining their race.”

Briatore did not spare Colapinto in his assessment. “I know that Franco has taken full responsibility for it, as he should; in fact, he braked far too late considering the context of the race and the safety car restart. It was a very poor move for a driver of his experience.”

Both Gasly and Norris were visibly frustrated after the race. Norris went further than most, calling on the FIA to consider a one-race ban for what he characterised as careless driving.

Briatore indicated he had not yet decided on any internal disciplinary response but made clear that action of some kind was being weighed. “I want to take time to reflect on it and consider what course of action should be taken, so we can learn from it and avoid such a situation in future,” he said.

The timing is particularly awkward for Colapinto, who had been enjoying the strongest run of form of his brief F1 career in the weeks leading up to Baku — form that had already earned him a new Alpine contract for the 2027 season alongside Gasly at the Enstone-based outfit. Sunday’s incident now casts a shadow over that momentum and leaves Briatore publicly weighing consequences for one of his own signed drivers.