Colapinto Baku: Gasly Sets Alpine’s Benchmark

Pierre Gasly’s seventh-place finish in Baku practice showed Alpine’s current pace, while Franco Colapinto is still searching for the right balance before qualifying.

Gasly gives Alpine a clear benchmark in Baku

Alpine ended Thursday in Baku with a mixed picture.

Pierre Gasly finished seventh in FP2, while Franco Colapinto was 11th. The Frenchman completed his best lap in 1:44.843, with Colapinto at 1:45.479. The gap between the two Alpine drivers was therefore 0.636 seconds.

For Steve Nielsen, Alpine’s managing director, Gasly’s result is currently the better indication of what the A526 can deliver in Baku.

“Pierre’s position probably reflects where we think the car is here,” Nielsen said after FP2. He added that Colapinto is still dealing with some balance issues.

Gasly and Colapinto remain Alpine’s two drivers as the team searches for more performance in Baku.

Colapinto’s Thursday was not a disaster.

He improved from 18th in FP1 to 11th in FP2. Alpine also remained close to several midfield rivals despite bringing no new upgrades to Azerbaijan.

The team focused instead on more conventional setup work. That included energy recovery and deployment, tire preparation, fuel loads and finding clean laps.

Gasly managed to bring all those elements together in the second session.

Colapinto is still looking for the same balance.

Colapinto’s main issue is car balance

Nielsen described the problem as relatively small.

“There are some balance issues to resolve on his side. Nothing major,” the Alpine executive explained. He said Colapinto simply does not feel as comfortable with the car as Gasly at the moment.

That distinction matters.

Alpine is not pointing to a structural problem with the A526. Instead, the team expects to work on the setup before Friday’s final practice and qualifying sessions.

Nielsen also avoided making a firm promise.

“There is never any certainty,” he said, while expressing confidence in the team’s ability to improve the car from one day to the next.

Colapinto has previous experience at Baku, the circuit where he scored his first Formula 1 points in 2024.

The circuit itself leaves little margin for compromise.

Baku combines long straights with slow corners and an extremely narrow section around the old city. Alpine notes that the difference between Turn 16 and Turn 1 covers 2.2 kilometers, while the narrowest point at Turn 8 measures just 7.6 meters.

That makes balance especially important.

A driver needs confidence under braking and on throttle exits. Colapinto therefore needs the car to behave consistently before he can extract the same level of performance as his team-mate.

Alpine does not expect Thursday to tell the whole story

There is another reason Alpine remains cautious about the order.

Several midfield rivals introduced upgrades for Baku. The team believes those changes could unlock more performance later in the weekend.

At the same time, Nielsen said he does not think Alpine has yet seen the best from Audi, Racing Bulls or Williams.

That means Thursday’s classification should not be treated as a final picture.

Friday’s FP3 and qualifying will provide a much clearer comparison.

Gasly also believes there is more performance available. Alpine’s official report said the team made good progress in FP2 and that both drivers produced cleaner, more consistent laps.

Gasly and Colapinto with Alpine’s A526 at the start of the 2026 season.

For Colapinto, the immediate target is therefore clear.

He needs to solve the balance issue before qualifying and unlock the pace Alpine believes is already available in the car.

The Argentine arrives in Baku after finishing seventh in Madrid, while Gasly is also coming off a strong recent period for Alpine.

The team has already identified where it wants the A526 to be.

Now the focus is on whether Colapinto can reach that same window.

The Colapinto Baku weekend has started with an 11th-place FP2 result, but Alpine’s own assessment suggests the car has more pace. Gasly’s seventh place is the current benchmark, and Friday will show whether Colapinto can close the gap before qualifying.