Franco Colapinto lamented “a little mistake cost me a lot” as he is set to start his Formula 1 debut with Williams at the Italian Grand Prix from 18th place on the grid.
Dropped in this week at Williams as a mid-season swap for Logan Sargeant, Colapinto has had to get to grips with life in F1 at a rapid rate.
The Argentine positively progressed through practice, finishing two-tenths off of team-mate Alex Albon in FP2 and inside the top-10 in final practice.
However, amid the threat of elimination, Colapinto pushed hard on his final lap in the opening Q1 qualifying session, running wide at the second Lesmo during an effort he felt was good enough to advance.
“I think I felt a little bit of understeer. It was quite on the limit, that lap, and I just dropped two tyres in that double curve, and I couldn’t catch it back,” said Colapinto.
“So just a little mistake that cost me a lot, maybe a chance of going into Q2.
“It was only one-tenth of a second, so it’s a pity, but it’s part of it, and I’m gonna get much stronger soon, I think.
“However, this is just the start and there are things I still need to work on with only having a few laps in an F1 car.
“I’m a bit frustrated right now but I know there is a lot of potential, and the team has been working hard to make the car suit me a bit better.”
Looking forward to the Grand Prix, where Colpainto should far surpass his total lap count in the Williams FW46 thus far, the rookie said managing the tyres will be his biggest challenge.
“It’s gonna be tough,” he said.
“I want to try and learn the most I can from the session and try to understand more the tyres.
“I think that is the most important part. And let’s see how it is.”
This weekend in Monza has been a whirlwind for the Colapinto, who reference the opportunity handed to him by Williams for the final nine rounds of the 2024 season as “insane.”
From practice and qualifying, the 21-year-old feels he’s made a good start to life at the top-level of single-seater motorsport with more to come moving forward.
“I feel like we have good potential, and that I have to do, of course, a step in the next couple of races,” he said.
“It’s been a decent start. It’s gonna be a good few races to go and good to get experience here [at Monza] on how to manage tyres.
