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Franco Colapinto shared his experience after racing alongside his childhood hero Lewis Hamilton. The Williams driver mentioned that he admires the way Hamilton deals with young drivers.
Colapinto is the newest addition to the F1 grid. He debuted with Williams during the Italian GP weekend when the team replaced Logan Sargeant mid-season. So far, he has taken part in three races and also managed to score four points.
Recently, he discussed how he felt after racing alongside Lewis Hamilton. He revealed that the Mercedes driver was his childhood hero and that he also congratulated him after the race.
"Of course, to be fighting with one of your heroes when you were younger, it's something very special," Franco Colapinto said during his appearance on the The Fast And The Curious podcast. "And I did enjoy it a lot. Ater the race he came and congratulated me and I respected it a lot. And it was just very nice to see how open he was, how he respected young drivers. And it's something very special for anyone in motorsports I think."
Franco Colapinto is the first Argentine driver on the Formula 1 grid since Gastón Mazzacane in 2001. He will be taking part in the remaining races of the season. However, since Carlos Sainz is set to race for the team in 2025, he will lose his spot. But his impressive debut can guarantee a seat for him in the future.
Franco Colapinto reveals preparation for his first F1 Sprint weekend at COTA
The 2024 F1 US Grand Prix is set to be Franco Colapinto's first run in a Sprint weekend. While a traditional GP weekend gives the drivers three practice sessions to test their cars and set them up accordingly, a Sprint weekend only has one Free Practice session on Friday.
This can sometimes be challenging for a new driver, especially for Colapinto, who has the least experience on the grid. However, he seems to be preparing well. He revealed that he has been practicing runs on the simulator. He also feels positive about the Americas triple-header as "it's great to be close to home."
"It’s great to be close to home in the Americas for the upcoming triple header," Williams Racing quoted their driver. "This weekend will be my first time racing at COTA and first Sprint event in F1. Only having one hour of Free Practice makes it a challenge to get up to speed before Sprint Qualifying but I’m determined to hit the ground running."
"During the break, I’ve been putting in the work on the simulator back at Grove with the team to be as prepared as possible."
The US GP will also mark his teammate Alex Albon's 100th F1 race since making his debut with Toro Rosso (now VCARB) in 2019.
