Franco Colapinto secured a seventh-place finish at the inaugural Spanish Grand Prix after studying teammate Pierre Gasly’s dominant Monza qualifying telemetry.
The Alpine pair were separated by just 0.050 seconds during the first segment of qualifying in Italy. Gasly then extended his advantage to four tenths by Q3 to secure a surprise pole position.
Speaking to Motorsport.com, Colapinto admitted he needed to review why he was falling behind. “He is more experienced and the steps he was making in everything, both in driving and energy management, from one run to another, from Q1 to Q2 to Q3, were very clear. I learned from that.”
Energy Deployment Changes Pace
The Argentine applied those lessons in Madrid to outqualify his garage neighbour and reach Q3. That strong Saturday performance arrived despite intense final qualifying pressure. He was forced to abandon his opening Q2 run following a heavy slide through the high-speed La Monumental corner.
Defending 2025 world champion Lando Norris eventually claimed top spot, but the Alpine driver was elated with his own progression. “Both Q2 and Q3 were amazing laps,” Colapinto added. “I ticked everything and I’m very pleased with that. I think after Monza I learned a lot from Pierre’s qualifying and I tried to take a step here. I did it and I maximised everything again,” he told the outlet.
His Sunday race pace validated the granular approach. Colapinto held firm as the leading driver behind the primary championship contenders. Alpine team management must now ensure both drivers maintain this optimal energy deployment strategy heading into the Azerbaijan Grand Prix next week.
