Why does Franco Colapinto owe his place in Formula 1… to the Covid pandemic?

Logan sargeant and his successor Franco Colapinto have more in common than we thought: both come from the academy Williams, both did not win a title nor in Formula 3nor in Formula 2...and both narrowly got their seat at Williams at the Super License level.

Remember, at the end of 2022: even before the end of the season, Williams formalizes the tenure of Logan Sargeant for the 2023 season. Problem: at the time, the American did not have enough points on his Super License to drive a Formula 1 (40 required) and his promotion was conditional on obtaining the famous sesame. For this, the Floridian had to finish at least 7th in the Formula 2 championship, which he managed to do by finally finishing 4th.

For two points!

The problem also almost arose to establish Franco Colapinto even before the end of the 2024 season. If the Argentinian achieves a solid performance in Formula 2 with a 6th place in the championship and a victory for his first season in the antechamber of Formula 1, he “only” has 42 points on his Super License, the bare minimum to access the premier category. A total that he owes in particular to a special exemption from the Sports Regulations linked… to Covid-19. Explanations.

First of all, what is the Super License? It is the official document issued by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) to be able to participate in the Formula 1 World Championship. It allows its holder to prove that he has the qualifications required to drive a car in the premier category.

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To obtain it, you must meet different criteria: be at least 18 years old, have a driving license, hold an FIA International Degree A license and submit to a question session concerning the most important points. most important of the International Sporting Code and the F1 Sporting Regulations. The driver must obtain a minimum total of 40 points on his Super License in championships approved by the FIA. Each championship has its own points scale, depending on its importance, the difficulty of the championship and its international reputation.

Usually, it is the points accumulated over the last three calendar years preceding the year of the date of the request which are counted. However, due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the rule has been relaxed: if the three calendar years immediately preceding the date of the request include the calendar year 2020 or 2021, the FIA ​​will take into consideration the greater number of points accumulated during three of the four calendar years immediately preceding the year of the date of application.

Colapinto helped by the waiver

And this is where Franco Colapinto takes advantage. Indeed, the Argentinian can do without his worst season over the last four years – namely the 2022 season for the new Williams driver – and accumulate his 42 Super License points over the 2020, 2021 and 2023 seasons! In 2022, the Buenos Aires driver finished 9th in the Formula 3 championship, granting him only 3 Super License points. A low score compared to the 2020 seasons (12 points, 3rd in Formula Renault Eurocup and 3rd in the Toyota Racing Series), 2021 (10 points, 6th in FRECA) and 2023 (15 points, 4th in Formula 3).

If this exemption had not existed, Franco Colapinto would find himself today with a total of only 28 points, far from the 40 points necessary to obtain the Super License and therefore, drive in Formula 1!

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