Watch: Franco Colapinto has a massive crash and completely destroys his Williams F1 car during the F1 Las Vegas GP
Franco Colapinto brought in the fears James Vowles and the company wanted to avoid, as the Williams driver crashed his challenger in the Las Vegas Grand Prix Qualifying. This was the sixth crash in three successive race weekends for Williams, and it could not have come at a worse time.
Williams has been plagued by a series of crashes in the last few race weekends. Besides minor crashes throughout the year, the Grove-based team faced two crashes in Mexico, three in Brazil, and one in the United States as of now.
The cost of repairing three cars at Interlagos was solely nearly $2.46 million, and one can expect the cost to go even higher amid a tight budget cap situation. The crash has come amid the British team's shortage of spare parts, something James Vowles-led team has been suffering from for a long time.
Watch the crash video below:
Nearing the end of Q2 at Las Vegas Strip Circuit, Colapinto suffered a massive crash, destroying his car completely. The Argentine driver was looking for a place in Q3 with the final flying lap but ended up on the wall. His crash scattered debris aplenty on the track and halted the progress of Q3.
The F1 crew continued the recovery, while Franco Colapinto escaped unscathed. As a result, he failed to qualify for Q3 and was out in Q2 in P14. His teammate, Alex Albon, failed to make it to Q2, as he was out in Q1 in P18.
Franco Colapinto hailed Williams' mechanics for quick recovery
Ahead of the 2024 Las Vegas Grand Prix, Franco Colapinto hailed the Williams team mechanics for their valiant efforts in bringing both cars to the race weekends. After three major crashes at Interlagos, rumors spread that the British team would not be able to field a car in Nevada this weekend.
“Unfortunately for the team, we left the race [in Brazil] with a lot of damage," Colapinto said. "But the boys in the workshop have been working so, so hard to get the cars back here in Vegas."
He added, “In the latest spec, the cars are looking great, the guys did a fantastic job in the factory, so I’m very proud of them. They are the heroes of the week by far, so yeah, very great.”
Colapinto's teammate, Alex Albon, also took the opportunity to laud the mechanic's efforts. He stated that the crew showed "huge efforts" to get the job on time.