Helmut Marko Showers Franco Colapinto With Praise - 'Someone for the Future'

Red Bull motorsport advisor Helmut Marko has hinted at the team considering Franco Colapinto in the future after his impressive performances so far.

Oct 23, 2022; Austin, Texas, USA; Helmut Marko of Red Bull Racing Team holds up the World Constructors' Champions trophy after the running of the U.S. Grand Prix F1 race at Circuit of the Americas. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images / Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

Red Bull motorsport advisor Helmut Marko has hinted that the Austrian team could consider Franco Colapinto in the future. The Argentinian driver has stepped in at Williams after Logan Sargeant was ousted. However, Colapinto does not have a chance of signing a 2025 contract with the Grove-based squad as they have already confirmed Carlos Sainz and Alex Albon.

The 21-year-old Argentine driver has taken part in three Formula 1 races, making his debut at the Italian Grand Prix while substituting for Logan Sargeant at Williams. It didn't take long for Colapinto to demonstrate his talent, matching the performance of his more experienced teammate, Alex Albon, in the FW46. His rapid adaptation has garnered significant praise, particularly from the influential Helmut Marko, who described Colapinto as "someone for the future" in an exclusive interview with Motorsport-Total.com.

"George Russell is on par with Hamilton in qualifying, if not faster. But George Russell is linked to Mercedes-Benz and now, I think, we are focusing on our juniors," he began.

"We see it with Colapinto, for example, as a relatively inexperienced and not very successful guy in the junior series, although it must be said that he never had the top teams, but what an incredible performance he is having now. And now let's see what our juniors or even a  can do. He can also be called a junior. But how does he compare to Lawson?" 

While acknowledging Colapinto's long-term contract with Williams, Marko confirmed that Colapinto’s future potential is undeniable.

"I think he has a long-term contract with Williams and he is definitely someone for the future. What he showed in Baku and Singapore was very, very good," he said.

"But as I said, I used it as an example. You can also cite the case of (Oliver) Bearman, where Formula 2 juniors have the potential to perform in Formula 1, where you couldn't always rely only on drivers who already had five or three years of experience, as you did in the past," Marko concluded.

Marko isn't the only one noticing Colapinto's impressive performances. Red Bull driver Sergio Perez also applauded the driver for his defending skills as the Mexican driver attempted to overtake him. Responding to Perez's words, Colapinto noted:

“Checo [Perez] is a super nice guy.

“I grew up watching him racing in F1. Waking up early in Argentina and supporting him as a driver from Mexico, closest to us.

“It was really nice supporting him and it’s even better racing him.”