Flavio Briatore hints at Franco Colapinto stay: “We need stability, target is top-4 in 2026”. Flavio Briatore suggests Franco Colapinto could stay at Alpine for 2026.

Alpine F1, which drivers for 2026?

With Pierre Gasly’s contract renewal announced at Monza—five years to the day since his first and so far only Formula 1 victory—Briatore has secured the most valuable asset in Enstone’s line-up. What remains uncertain, however, is whether Gasly, widely seen as Alpine’s lead driver, will still have Franco Colapinto alongside him. The young Argentine, formerly part of Williams, was initially signed for just five Grands Prix in place of Jack Doohan. After Silverstone, his deal was supposed to be either concluded or formally extended, but since then there has been silence, fueling doubts about his future with the team and in Formula 1 overall.

Flavio Briatore speaks

In an interview with French news agency AFP, Briatore surprisingly opened the door to confirming Colapinto for 2026, something that seemed unlikely only weeks ago. The Italian team boss admitted the rookie has been showing progress: “Renewing Gasly was fundamental for the team, because he is one of the best drivers on the grid and one of the pillars of this project. He is part of the family and wants to win with us. The second driver? The team needs stability, and the possibility of keeping the same two drivers for next year is part of that stability. For now, we haven’t decided yet, but normally if you look for stability, it means keeping both drivers. The most important thing, though, is to build a car that works.”

On that front, Alpine will at least benefit from the switch to Mercedes engines, widely regarded in the paddock as the best power unit for the new 2026 regulations: “We will have the same engine as the others, which means no more excuses. Alpine will have all the conditions to succeed, even if honestly we already thought we could do much better this year. Our current engine has been a huge handicap, and especially now that the cars are so close, losing two tenths can drop you from sixth to seventeenth. Financially we are secure, we have Renault’s backing and strong sponsors, while the wind tunnel and engineers are doing their jobs well.”

Briatore added: “We have everything we need to perform well next year, and we must do it. We can aim for podiums, there is potential for the top-6 and even the top-4 if everything goes right. I certainly didn’t come back to Formula 1 to be a tourist.”