Defying team order ‘right thing to do’ – Colapinto

Oct.20 (GMM) Franco Colapinto has risked internal backlash at Alpine by openly defying a team order during the United States GP – a decision that new team manager Steve Nielsen has described as “disappointing” and subject to review.

With both Alpines running out of the points and the team once again the slowest outfit of the weekend, Colapinto ignored a late-race instruction to hold position behind Pierre Gasly as the pair fought for a lowly 17th place.

“I think it was the right thing to do,” the Argentine rookie said afterward. “It was my turn to give up the position several times before. I was going much faster, to be honest – I think Pierre had slightly older tyres, and he was about a second slower.

“It was the best thing to do given the situation we were in. Bortoleto was attacking me a lot, and passing Pierre was a way to defend myself as well. If I didn’t pass him, he was probably going to pass us both.

“We were fighting for 17th and 18th – there’s no point arguing about these things.”

Colapinto’s aggressive move on the final lap nearly forced Gasly off track, drawing a sharp response from the pitwall. Nielsen, who only recently stepped in to lead the struggling Enstone operation, issued a stern post-race statement.

“We gave the instruction for the drivers to maintain position as we were managing fuel with both cars and the added variable of the number of laps remaining with the leaders in close proximity,” Nielsen said.

“As a team, any instruction made by the pitwall is final, and today we are disappointed that this didn’t happen. It’s something we will review and deal with internally.”

Gasly, who has generally maintained composure through Alpine’s dismal season, chose not to escalate the matter. “We have many things to review as a team,” he told Canal Plus.

“The main problem is that we are just too slow.”

The episode comes just as Colapinto is reportedly finalising a new deal with Alpine for 2026 – a sign, perhaps, that the 22-year-old no longer fears for his seat.

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