Williams star Franco Colapinto discusses the controversial incident with Liam Lawson in Mexico
Franco Colapinto blamed Liam Lawson for their clash during the 2024 Mexican GP. Speaking to media, including Sportskeeda, the Williams driver expressed frustration, feeling that Lawson’s maneuver cost him valuable race positions.
In the closing laps, Lawson attempted an overtake but collided with Colapinto, causing significant damage to his front wing and resulting in a 16th-place finish for the VCARB driver. Colapinto felt Lawson braked too late and went wide at Turn 1, leading to contact at Turn 2. The Argentinian driver also mentioned earlier contact with Oscar Piastri, which had already damaged his right rear.
Asked by Sportskeeda to describe his incident with Lawson, Franco Colapinto said:
“No, you can ask him maybe. I think he broke quite late and he went wide in T1. He pushed me off, and then he tried to do the cut back into Turn 2 and hit my right rear. So not much to say. But Oscar also hit me in T1. Looks like my rear right was, uh, everyone was looking for my rear right this race. It was I think a decent race. It was not quite enough for points this weekend. We were not strong enough in the race pace, but I think we have a better chance in Brazil now.”
Franco Colapinto reckons that William's strategy was on point until contact with Lawson and Piastri. He believes his strategy was working well until he made contact with both Oscar Piastri and Liam Lawson, noting that battling with Sergio Perez and Pierre Gasly also cost him valuable lap time.
While Perez’s clash with Lawson resulted in damage and a loss of performance, Gasly managed to fight through the field to finish tenth. Ultimately, Colapinto had to settle for 12th place. He described the race as tricky due to the heavy traffic but felt he had maximized the potential of his car given the circumstances.
Asked if his strategy was paying off until contact with Lawson, Franco Colapinto said:
“It was paying off. I think if you go back to the race and see how many times. I lost a lot of lap time with Checo coming in the pits, when I was fighting with Piastri, when he hit me. I lost a couple of seconds. [intelligible] Probably also a little fight with Pierre at the end. But on traffic, it’s just so, so tricky. And it’s so hard to overtake here. We did the best we could, but it was quite, quite tricky. It was a good race. We tried to manage well, I think we maximized the car we had. It was not quite enough for points, but we were close again. It was a job well done, and we just need to move on to Brazil and try to score there."
Considering that Franco Colapinto had never raced on the Mexican GP circuit before, his performance was commendable. Although he couldn't maximize his potential in qualifying, finishing 16th, he improved to finish 12th in the race. Unlike his teammate Alex Albon, who crashed out at the start, the 21-year-old completed the race.
Since his debut in Monza, Colapinto has scored five points for Williams. The team currently sits eighth in the constructors’ championship, though they remain a significant distance from rivals VCARB and Haas.