Argentine driver Franco Colapinto (Alpine) finished ninth on the first day of this week's preseason tests in Bahrain. The leader of the day was British driver George Russell, from Mercedes. Colapinto's best time of the day was 1:35.254, which allowed him to finish 1.795 seconds behind Russell. The top three was completed by Australian Oscar Piastri (McLaren) and Monegasque Charles Leclerc (Ferrari), who were 1.280 and 1.280 seconds behind Russell, respectively. The other drivers who finished ahead of Colapinto were British reigning world champion Lando Norris (McLaren, 4th), Italian Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes, 5th), French Isack Hadjar (Red Bull, 6th), British Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari, 7th), and Spanish Carlos Sainz Jr. (Williams, 8th). This session was not only positive for Colapinto due to his final result, but he also finished ahead of his Alpine teammate, Frenchman Pierre Gasly, who placed 14th. Additionally, he completed 60 laps throughout the session, which ran from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., allowing him to gain confidence in his Alpine A526, with which he aims to significantly improve on last year's performance, when he was one of the two drivers who failed to score points, alongside Australian Jack Doohan. Colapinto's activity will continue with a busy Thursday, during which he will participate in two sessions from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. and from 9 p.m. to 1 a.m. The season has been very positive for Colapinto, who last week started in 18th place on Wednesday at the Bahrain International Circuit, and two days later finished eighth.
Colapinto Finishes Ninth in Bahrain Tests
Argentine driver Franco Colapinto (Alpine) secured ninth place in the first day of preseason tests in Bahrain, outperforming his teammate Pierre Gasly and completing 60 laps.
