Alpine managing director Steven Nielsen said the team was “disappointed” in Franco Colapinto after he ignored team orders not to overtake Pierre Gasly in the closing stages of the American Grand Prix.
Both Alpine drivers were under pressure from Gabriel Bortleto in the battle for 17th place in the closing stages of the race, but the team instructed Colapinto to defend his position behind Gasly. Colapinto doubted his judgment at the time and overtook his teammate at Turn 1, but Gasly quickly fell behind the Sauber and finished last.
“On the Pierre side, we covered the threat of a soft boxing undercut a little earlier than we would have liked and then had a late pit stop. We will review this and correct it,” Nielsen said. “Franco was able to extend his medium run to get some tire delta towards the end of the race, where he caught up with Pierre.
“We were managing the fuel management of both cars and the additional variables of the number of laps remaining with the leaders, so we instructed the drivers to hold their positions. As a team, the instructions given by the pit wall are final and we are disappointed that that did not happen today, so we will review this internally and take action.”
Colapinto defended his decision to pass Gasly, saying he thought both cars would be passed if he didn’t move.
“I think today was a tough day for both of us. It was a tough weekend overall,” Colapinto said. “We struggled, but I think we learned something after a tough weekend. We hope to come back stronger in Mexico.
“But of course we have to keep working as a team. It was a tough day. I think in the final stint I had a little more pace than Pierre and Bortleto came up behind us and attacked very hard. And he was much faster than us, but with Pierre’s slowness we couldn’t hold him back. So I think it was best for the situation to keep me in front and keep both cars from getting behind Gaby.”
“I’m full of motivation. I know the car is difficult to drive and it’s very difficult at the moment. We’ve swapped positions a lot this year and they’ve let me race on other tracks as well. Here, given the situation I was in, I was attacked very hard by Bortleto, so I think it was probably best to put me in front, otherwise I would have been passed by both.”
“We have to analyze all the data and analyze every moment of the race, but we will come back even stronger for Mexico.
“I don’t know (if the call was a surprise). I think we’re working hard to get stronger for next year, and we’re analyzing every situation and trying to improve it. This moment on the weekend is so important. We try to make the best call possible every time, even if it’s not for points.”
