Franco Colapinto Confirmed as Alpine Race Driver for 2027

Alpine have nailed their colours to the mast – and Franco Colapinto’s name is painted on the side.

The Enstone team have confirmed the Argentine will stay on as a race driver for 2027, continuing alongside Pierre Gasly in an unchanged line-up they believe can drag the team back towards the sharp end of Formula 1.

From stopgap to cornerstone

Colapinto arrived at Alpine as a reserve for 2025, a long‑term project rather than an immediate solution. Then came the twist. From the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix, he was thrown into a race seat to replace Jack Doohan and asked to sink or swim in the deep end of the grid.

He swam.

Retained for this season, Colapinto has banked 19 points from six Grands Prix so far, a solid return in a car that is still some way from the front. More importantly for Alpine, those points have helped lift the team to sixth in the constructors’ standings, a position that looked ambitious not so long ago.

On and off the track, he has locked into step with Gasly. The Frenchman, tied to Alpine until at least the end of 2028, was always expected to be the fixed point in the team’s future. Colapinto has turned himself from the unknown variable into the obvious partner.

Alpine’s hierarchy see that blend as a competitive asset, describing the pairing as “the perfect match-up to drive the team forwards into the future.”

Briatore wants stability, demands speed

Flavio Briatore, back in the paddock as Alpine’s Executive Advisor, has been blunt about what he wants: continuity in the cockpit, revolution in the design office.

“We are very happy to confirm our driver line-up for 2027 with Franco staying as a race driver alongside Pierre,” he said, underlining the value he places on a settled garage. Consistency, in his view, is non‑negotiable.

But there was no attempt to dress up the bigger issue. Alpine’s fate will not be decided by contracts alone. “The most significant we have to get right is designing and building a fast race car, which absolutely remains our number one priority,” Briatore stressed.

Colapinto’s trajectory has clearly impressed him. Miami and Montreal were singled out as the races that confirmed what he says he already believed: that the Argentine “belongs in Formula 1 and he belongs at this team.” The expectation is now clear – Colapinto and Gasly must keep delivering while the factory chases the performance leap required to fight, and eventually win, at the front.

Colapinto digs in for the long haul

For Colapinto, the new deal is both reward and responsibility. He spoke like a driver who knows he is no longer auditioning.

“I am very pleased to remain with this team in 2027. I feel very happy and very settled here and it’s been even better that we have made significant progress this year compared to last,” he said, pointing directly at the upward curve Alpine have managed to plot.

There is no attempt to hide the scale of the task. “We have a lot more milestones to reach,” he admitted, but underlined the effort going on behind the scenes as the team “work so hard in finding performance and making the car better and better.”

The targets are not modest. “Our long-term goals are obvious – to compete and win,” Colapinto said, thanking Briatore and Managing Director Steve Nielsen for the trust that now stretches into the future. His own focus, though, stays narrow: keep delivering on Sundays, let the rest fall into place.

“I’m looking forward to seeing how everything plays out and focusing on my job on-track first and foremost.”

Upgrades, Monza, and a statement to make

The timing of the announcement is no accident. The news drops just before the Italian Grand Prix, a weekend that will give Colapinto another tool in his armoury.

At Monza, he will finally receive the upgraded package Alpine rushed onto Gasly’s car at Zandvoort. Gasly got the early taste; Colapinto now gets the same hardware as the team look to validate the step and lock in their development path.

A settled line-up, a clear message from the top, and fresh parts bolted on for one of the calendar’s most unforgiving circuits. Alpine have made their bet on the future – now the question is whether Colapinto and Gasly can turn that faith into the kind of results that drag this team back into the fight they insist still belongs to them.