Alpine says Franco Colapinto and Paul Aron are in a straight fight for its second Formula 1 seat next year, with other contenders now all but ruled out.
The team’s executive advisor Flavio Briatore has revealed to The Race his mind is clear in terms of how he plans to approach filling the currently vacant seat alongside Pierre Gasly - whose contract was recently extended - for 2026.
And while there have been rumours that Briatore could look to grab a talent from Formula 2, or even snatch Liam Lawson or Yuki Tsunoda if they were released by Red Bull, he has revealed that the driver decision will be made within Alpine's internal pool of drivers.
Briatore explained that he did not view anyone on the current F1 grid who is available as a viable alternative candidate - and he felt that no one sufficiently stood out in F2.
So instead, as Colapinto shows signs of progression and reserve driver Aron has entered the frame after some recent impressive FP1 outings, Briatore said from his perspective it was a straight head-to-head battle between them.
“It's between Franco and Paul,” Briatore told The Race in an exclusive interview. “Paul is a very nice guy, a very quick driver as well. And I need to understand what is the best for the team, you know?”
Briatore said that the decision between the two would be based on performance and ultimate potential, as he made clear that there were no personal management ties to either that would influence things.
“I mean, I don't have any interest with anybody,” he said. “Before the people were driving me mad [by complaining] because I was managing 50% of the drivers [on the grid]. Now, I don't manage anybody.
“I don't care. I don't have any interest. My only interest is to try to take in the team the best driver available and do the best job with us. It is as simple as that.
“I need another one or two races to see, but honestly today I don't know [which one].”
Outside options
Briatore explained that narrowing down his options to rule out anyone from outside the team was due to the fact that he felt there were no top-level talents in F1 that were currently available.
He also suggested that there was nobody outside of grand prix racing that had made enough of an impact to take a punt on – as happened when he steered Michael Schumacher and Fernando Alonso to F1 titles.
“I don't see any other possibility,” he said. “We see other ones, but we don't feel it [anything special] – because the good guys go ‘boom’.
“I remember when Schumi was in Group C with Sauber, he won every race…
"GP2 was the same. [Lewis] Hamilton was bam, bam, bam, bam. Fernando was driving Formula 3000 or whatever and he was winning every race.
“I remember testing Fernando. I put Fernando in Minardi and Giancarlo [Minardi] called me and said: 'I have never seen stuff like that'."
“Now, take away Max [Verstappen]. The rest?..." Briatore trailed off, responding with a shrug.
F2 confusion
Briatore also elaborated on his reluctance to go for anyone in F2.
He suggested that the results in F2 were so up and down for drivers that it was impossible to get a handle on who the best were in the category.
“Did you see the races in F2 and F3? You see one guy is winning a race. The next race he is 14th. You see the next race he is P3 and after one week he is P12 again.
“In our time, GP2, whatever, Hamilton, was there and he finished first, second, second, third, second, third, first, third. It was a very clear indication, no?
“[Nico] Rosberg, bang, bang, bang, GP2. You remember many people from GP2. Now it's very difficult because you see somebody P1. And after one week, he's no more P1. He is no more P2 - he is P14. Very confusing.”
Colapinto improving
While Briatore had been unconvinced about Colapinto's performance after his initial races with the squad, as Colapinto struggled to match Gasly, that opinion has changed in recent races.
With the Argentinean driver having got more comfortable with the car, Briatore senses that Colapinto is finally making the progress that other rookies have also shown.
“Franco arriving..these young drivers arrive in the team with a lot of pressure,” he said. “[Kimi] Antonelli, [Franco] Colapinto, Jack Doohan and this and that.
“It is very difficult to manage the car, very difficult to talk with engineering. It is a big team. One thousand people, a big responsibility, and maybe some drivers were put in F1 a little bit too early.
“After six-seven or eight races, you see, Antonelli was better, and after that [Gabriel] Bortoleto was better. Then after that Franco is better. We need to consider what we can have."
Aron has boosted his credentials after a strong FP1 outing for Alpine at Monza, which followed two appearances he made for Sauber at the British and Hungarian GPs.
