Franco Colapinto left the Italian Grand Prix of Formula 1 frustrated after wasting a rare opportunity to fight among the top positions. The Argentine even reached third place in Monza, but a mistake pushed him to the back of the pack before a recovery to ninth place.
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Starting seventh, Colapinto gained positions with incidents involving Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton and then advanced even further by overtaking Oscar Piastri. At the restart after the red flag, he started fourth and attacked Max Verstappen right at the first chicane, even taking third place for a few moments.
The Dutchman regained the position shortly after, and then came the decisive moment. Colapinto lost control of the Alpine in the Lesmo area, went through the gravel, and dropped to 16th. “I had a great opportunity and didn’t take it. I’m sad, very sad about that. I think it could have been a great race, and it was a big mistake,” he told ESPN Argentina.
The Argentine also said he still doesn’t fully understand what happened. “I lost the car very aggressively, I was very fast through the gravel and had a lot of damage. I thought I would have to retire,” he explained. Alpine managed to adjust the car and Colapinto returned to the fight, recovering positions until finishing ninth.
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Even with the points, the frustration remained. “We don’t have many opportunities to fight up front, and it’s even more frustrating when something like this happens. I think we should have scored more points, so I apologize to the team,” he said.
Asked about the overtake on Verstappen, Colapinto downplayed the significance of the move but acknowledged the meaning of the lost opportunity. “It was cool to be fighting with them. Normally we can’t fight side by side with the cars and teams at the front. That’s why losing a chance like that is very painful.”
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