Franco Colapinto was unimpressed with Oscar Piastri in Abu Dhabi (Image: Getty)
was unimpressed with after the pair made contact during the opening stages of the . The driver also made fun of the Australian’s struggles to overtake later in the race.
Piastri started the season finale from the front row of the grid and was well set to follow team-mate and pole-sitter through Turn One until lunged in. The pair made contact and both spun with the driver ultimately picking up a 10-second time penalty for the collision.
The man found himself in the wars once again soon after, bumping into the rear of Colapinto’s FW46 machine on the approach to Turn Six after misjudging his braking point. A puncture and a 10-second penalty followed, ruining Piastri’s race, although he did manage to recover to finish in P10.
Asked about the crash after the race, Colapinto didn’t hold back. “We had a very good Friday,” he said. “Today I started and wanted to finish the race. Piastri came and crashed into me, I don’t know what’s wrong with this guy.
“He crashed into me at Turn Six and then crashed into more people. He spent five laps trying to pass Tsunoda, who was in an AlphaTauri (), who was two seconds slower and [therefore] I couldn’t pass him. It’s a shame because that’s when the race got complicated for us and we had a very good pace.”
Don’t miss…
Our community members are treated to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. You can check out at any time. Read our Privacy Policy
Oscar Piastri picked up a 10-second penalty for the contact (Image: Getty)
While Piastri managed to recover after the crash, Colapinto’s race took a turn for the worse. The Argentinian racer may have escaped the contact without significant damage, but his race was ultimately ended prematurely by a power unit issue.
This brought an end to a frustrating run for Colapinto. The 21-year-old was on cloud nine after scoring points in two of his first four F1 starts, but since then, he has failed to register a top-10 finish, suffering three DNFs in five races, the most recent two both being out of his control.
More F1… [COMMENT] [DRAMA]
Colapinto had previously been linked with Sauber, Alpine and for the 2025 season, but his stock has declined in the past month, and his route onto the grid for next year looks complicated at best.
The Pilar-born driver’s last hope rests with the junior set-up. With heading for the exit door and Liam Lawson set to be promoted, Colapinto will hope that his early performances for Williams are enough to convince Helmut Marko that he is a stronger talent than Formula Two vice-champion Isack Hadjar.