Briatore contradicts Alpine's previous press release on Colapinto's situation

It comes after the Argentine replaced Jack Doohan at the French team after the Miami Grand Prix, with the Australian returning to Alpine as a reserve driver, the role he held during the 2024 season.

The Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix will be the first race for Colapinto since he left Williams at the end of the 2024 season, impressing there after replacing the sacked Logan Sargeant.

On Friday in Imola, Briatore mentioned that the number of races for Colapinto is not set, contradicting the press release Alpine published when the swap between the two drivers was announced, with Colapinto given five races to then be 'evaluated' after the Britush Grand Prix to see if he would continue.

"I must say, I had expected more from Jack Doohan – perhaps he needs a break," started Briatore while speaking to Sky Sports Italy, having his say on Doohan's departure.

"Franco will race as many times as necessary. I read somewhere that he would do five races, but no, there's no set number of races. He needs to be fast, not crash and score points. I ask him only three things — not ten. If he does those well, he can stay driving forever," Briatore explained, denying that there is a plan in place for the Argentine.

Several weeks ago, it was announced that Oliver Oakes stepped down as team boss of the French Formula 1 team, a role he had held since the summer of 2024.

During the race weekend in Imola, Briatore also commented on Oakes' departure, emphasising that the two have an excellent relationship.

"His resignation came after Miami due to a personal problem, and when it happened, I also didn't expect it. This is a close-knit team. There were rumours that I had a fallout with Oliver, but that's not true — we have a great relationship," said Briatore.

Since Oakes left, Briatore has been leading the team. Two days ago, Dave Greenwood was appointed as team representative, with Briatore's tasks hardly changing.