It is a question seemingly put to Franco Colapinto after every session he has entered as a Formula 1 driver – ‘do you think this performance will help get you a seat next year’?
In truth, the Argentinian has only an outside chance of lining up for the 2025 season-opening Australian Grand Prix on 16 March as, despite catching the eye, Colapinto has ended up in the right place at the wrong time.
Williams team principal James Vowles has explained why Colapinto was brought in to replace Logan Sargeant from the Italian GP onwards, the American having struggled for form as well as suffering a few high-speed crashes.
Colapinto, 21, hit the ground running having stepped up from the MP Motorsport team in F2 – taking five points from his four races, which started with the rookie recovering from a poor qualifying to finish 12th on debut in Monza.
He then outqualified team-mate Alex Albon at the Azerbaijan GP and went on to take his first points as he came home eighth, tussled with the Red Bull of Sergio Perez on his way to an 11th place finish in Singapore and then claimed a point by rounding out the top 10 in Austin – where he was also robbed of the fastest lap point by a tactical move from Alpine in the closing stages.
Such has his form caught the imagination in his homeland that F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali has hinted the sport could look to return to Argentina in the near future.
Franco Colapinto, Williams FW46
Photo by: Glenn Dunbar / Motorsport Images
But that plan could fall flat if Colapinto drops out of F1, a real possibility given there is no space at Williams – who are teaming Albon with the incoming Carlos Sainz for 2025 onwards.
Vowles has said he believes Colapinto is worthy of a drive – even if that means he ends up taking points off Williams while representing one of its rivals.
So what options does that leave open to a man who is already having to laugh off suggestions he could be F1’s answer to compatriot Lionel Messi?
There are two seats currently left unfilled for the 2025 F1 season but there are a number of moving parts that will ultimately decide which driver takes them.
RB, and big brother team Red Bull, have always preferred promoting from within their own racing programme – with world champions Sebastian Vettel and Max Verstappen the shining examples but also Daniel Ricciardo, Pierre Gasly and Sainz coming through a similar pathway.
Verstappen is in place for at least 2025 but Perez’s seat alongside him at Red Bull remains under scrutiny, the Mexican surviving a summer summit which awarded him a stay of execution for the rest of the year.
Ricciardo has gone from RB and his replacement from Austin onwards was Liam Lawson, another off the Red Bull production line, while his new team-mate Yuki Tsunoda is expected to get his first taste of driving a Red Bull in the Abu Dhabi test at the end of the season.
Liam Lawson, RB F1 Team, Yuki Tsunoda, RB F1 Team
Photo by: Red Bull Content Pool
If Perez is axed over the winter, it is likely Lawson and Tsunoda would be vying over a drive for the senior team of the Red Bull stable – meaning the other would stay at RB, where there could be room for Colapinto alongside.
“I think Franco’s turning heads, obviously,” Horner said after Colapinto’s point-scoring finish at the United States GP.
“Form in Formula 2 at the moment looks very difficult to read, because some of these youngsters are jumping in and doing a great job.
“I think Liam shone equally as brightly as some of Franco’s earlier races as well. At a track he’s never been to before, against a quick team-mate, to go from the back of the grid to P9 – it’s a good performance.”
Lawson is clearly highly regarded at Red Bull and would in all likelihood be ahead of Colapinto in a straight shootout for a seat – but the puzzle there is more complex than at most other squads.
The only other team without a completed driver line-up for next season is Sauber – who have yet to take a point throughout 2024.
The slowest car on the grid may not have broken the top 10, but 2025 is an important one as the team prepares to complete its full rebrand to Audi from 2026 when the German manufacturer enters the series.
Nico Hulkenberg has been signed from Haas to lead the team into a new era but a decision has yet to be taken on his team-mate, with former Ferrari team boss Mattia Binotto leading the search having taken the reins in August.
It seems increasingly unlikely that either of the current incumbents will remain, while Zhou Guanyu has said he will give his all to be kept on that is a scenario even more unexpected than Valtteri Bottas being retained.
Zhou Guanyu, Stake F1 Team KICK Sauber, Valtteri Bottas, Stake F1 Team KICK Sauber
Photo by: Andy Hone / Motorsport Images
That could open the door to Colapinto, but would driving a car that is seemingly the least desirable in F1 at the moment have a potentially negative impact on his burgeoning reputation?
Usually, yes, but the fact Audi is coming into F1 in a big way and with plenty of financial firepower means Colapinto could be tempted by the project.
He is, however, not the only option available to Binotto and the team – with the likes of Gabriel Bortoleto, Theo Pourchaire, Kevin Magnusssen and Mick Schumacher all likely to be in the hunt.
Reserve Driver
It might not technically be a place on the grid, but another potential option open to Colapinto would be to accept an offer to be a team’s reserve driver.
While simulator work, sponsorship duties and the odd free practice session might not be the most appealing avenue, anything can happen over the course of an F1 season that could end up with Colapinto back racing.
A reserve role keeps a driver in the conversation, close to the action and embedded within a team.
What is for certain is that, if Colapinto’s star is going to continue to shine, the next step in his fledgling career must be the right one.
