Williams team principal James Vowles is adamant Franco Colapinto has earned his place in Formula 1 for next season, even if it means he could take points off his current employer.
Eyebrows were raised over the decision to put F2 prospect Colapinto on board rather than a more experienced driver such as Mick Schumacher when Logan Sargeant was dropped.
Colapinto has impressed in his three F1 grands prix so far, recovering from a poor qualifying to finish 12th in Monza before outqualifying team-mate Alex Albon at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix and going on to take his first points as he came home eighth.
He then tussled with Sergio Perez before finishing 11th in Singapore and heads into this weekend’s United States Grand Prix off the back of high praise from the Red Bull driver.
However, with Williams having Albon paired up with Carlos Sainz from next year, there is no room for Colapinto to land a full-time drive – but Vowles wants to see him race in 2025 – with seats at Sauber and RB still up for grabs.
When asked at an Autosport Business panel event in Austin if Colapinto could be on the grid next year, Vowles replied: “It's definitely not out of the question.
“It's more down to one or two other teams, not giving it away too much but, from my perspective, he absolutely has earned his place on the grid within a few races.
“He hasn't finished growing, he's going to get quicker and quicker, and I think other teams know that on the grid. So even if he's taking points away from us, he's a professional racing driver and should be racing in Formula 1. Simple as that.”
Colapinto’s first taste of F1 came when he took the wheel for FP1 at the British Grand Prix earlier this year.
Vowles knew instantly that the 21-year-old was fast – but has been excited by how he has maintained such speed when the chips are down.
“I mean, taking a step back, I knew he was immensely quick,” he added.
“The first time we put him in the car at Silverstone, you sort of looked at it and went, jeez, this is that quick. But there's no pressure on your shoulders. How does that translate when there's pressure?
“Since then he's been…Singapore is probably the toughest race to throw someone in at the deep end and he basically delivered an absolute near-perfect result the first time out.”
