F1 News
Villeneuve with damning verdict: 'He didn't judge the situation well'
While many young drivers are given the chance to make their names in Formula One, Jacques Villeneuve sees it hard to predict how the talents will do in the competition next season. Moreover, the former world champion did not shy away from commenting on Franco Colapinto's performance either.
Next season in Formula One, five drivers will begin their first full-time season in the competition: Andrea Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes), Oliver Bearman (Haas), Gabriel Bortoleto (Sauber), Jack Doohan (Alpine) and Isack Hadjar (Racing Bulls). Plenty of new faces compared to the start of the 2024 season, where no changes have been made after the 2023 Abu Dhabi GP.
According to Jacques Villeneuve, the previous F2 season is not something to go by, and believes young talents are now given an opportunity to too early. "No idea what to expect out of Bortoleto. Formula 2 has never been a good judge of drivers. So, it's pointless until they get into F1. But right now they get into F1 with so little experience. It's very difficult to understand how you can get to that top level in the biggest sport in the world so quickly at such a young age with so little experience," the Canadian began to Action Network.
The 1997 world champion continued: "They get a lot of simulator work, which allows them to be quick but then you also see what happened with Antonelli in Monza."
Villeneuve shares verdict on Colapinto
Franco Colapinto surprised many in a positive way a few races into his F1 career, after Williams decided to replace Logan Sargeant with the young Argentine. However, towards the end of 2024, Colapinto was involved in more crashes, and according to Villeneuve, he has already "damaged his chance".
"If you are given the golden chance, it's for you to make the most of it. He can’t cry about it. He got a few races out of this in F1. Not many people get that so it's already impressive that he got that chance. I'm not sure what will happen with his future. He's still a quick driver. But what he showed is he didn't judge the situation really well," he argued.
By the time the youngster replaced Sargeant, Williams already had to their two seats handed out to Alex Albon and top free agent Carlos Sainz. Recently, it was announced that Colapinto will join Alpine as a test and reserve driver for 2025.
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