F1's latest superstar, Franco Colapinto, is not surprised by the performance levels he's shown in the car at the start of his career. The driver has replaced Logan Sargeant mid-season in a move that caught everyone by surprise.
The Argentinian was racing in F2 early in the year, but with the American failing to impress in F1 with Williams, an opportunity opened up. Colapinto has taken that opportunity with both hands and impressed with his performance.
The level at which he's performing is already much better than what Sargeant ever did. To add to this, he even got the better of his teammate Alex Albon in qualifying in Baku.
What has been even more interesting to see is that in just three races, Franco Colapinto has emerged as this breakout superstar in F1. The driver had a thousand followers on social media when he made his debut but in such a short span of time, he finds himself with more than 2 million followers on Instagram as his popularity has exploded.
Talking to Autosport about the level of performances he's put together, Colapinto said that none of it surprised him as such as he expected to be on the pace with Alex Albon. He said:
"No, I know what I can do, and I was expecting to be quick. Even though I didn't have a lot of experience with the car, that was the idea of the team and why they put me in the car, so I'm happy to be helping the team."
Franco Colapinto is happy with the learning curve he's been on in F1
Franco Colapinto has now done three races in F1. The Argentinian was solid in his debut race. He pushed his teammate Alex Albon a lot in the next two races in Baku and Singapore.
The progression and the growth curve are very impressive for the driver, and Colapinto admits that the learning curve has been steep for sure but satisfactory at the same time. He said while talking to Autosport:
"I think we are doing a good job together as a team. It's tough. There are a lot of things you can do in the car with the tools and so much stuff that you can change. But I am learning every time I'm going out and I'm just getting a bit more used to the car, a bit more used to how I can extract the maximum performance of the car, and that's going well."
Colapinto is already a points scorer in F1 and has been very impressive in his limited stint in the sport. The driver would be the one to keep an eye on in the last few races, especially since a slot for the 2025 grid is not confirmed for the youngster.