Alpine rejects Jeremy Clarkson comments about Franco Colapinto

Alpine rejects Clarkson comments

Jeremy Clarkson caused a stir during a Sky Sports F1 interview at the Circuit of the Americas after making remarks about Franco Colapinto. While discussing Alpine’s chances in Austin, the 66-year-old presenter joked that Colapinto received a grid penalty "for being Argentinian." Colapinto serves a 10-place grid penalty in Austin because he exceeded his permitted allocation of engine components by using a fourth control electronics unit. This penalty comes as teammate Pierre Gasly starts in P11. Jamie Campbell-Walter, who manages Colapinto, wrote on social media that the comments regarding the driver’s nationality were "completely unacceptable." He noted that the sport must not allow malicious comments from prominent figures to undo progress made in promoting respect and ending hostility. Alpine stated they are aware of the comments made by a team guest in a recent television interview and noted that these views do not align with the team’s values of promoting kindness and respect. The team also reiterated that Colapinto has their full support. This controversy follows recent efforts to cool tensions involving Colapinto’s fanbase, as rival drivers and team personnel have been targets of social media abuse. Clarkson is a guest of Alpine this weekend because the Enstone-based squad is his local team. The team emphasized that they will continue to support their driver regardless of the presenter’s comments.

Historical tensions in Argentina

Clarkson’s joke references a 2014 Top Gear special in Patagonia where his crew faced significant hostility from locals. The premise of that episode involved the trio driving 1,600 miles to Ushuaia to play a game of car football. During the trip, Clarkson drove a Porsche 928 with the registration plate H982 FKL. Residents in Ushuaia perceived the plate as an intentional reference to the 1982 Falklands War. In 2014, Clarkson, Richard Hammond, and James May traveled through Patagonia for a special episode where the crew faced stone-pelting and eventually had to abandon their cars at the roadside before they fled across the border into Chile. The BBC and executive producer Andy Wilman maintained that the registration was an unbelievable coincidence and that any suggestion of intentionality was completely untrue. Clarkson’s connection to Alpine remains strong because the factory sits near his Diddly Squat farm in Oxfordshire. He mentioned that he watched drivers like Michael Schumacher, Fernando Alonso, and Kimi Raikkonen work with the team over the years. He even noted that the person who looks after his rabbits at the farm has a father who works for Alpine.

Comments on celebrity guests

The interview also turned to the presence of celebrities at Formula 1 races, specifically regarding Kim Kardashian. Clarkson told hosts Martin Brundle, Naomi Schiff, and Simon Lazenby that he was not watching the interaction between Brundle and Kardashian in Singapore. He stated, "I’m sort of not interested in Kim Kardashian if I’m honest." He questioned why cameras focus on her, adding, "Why would I be interested in Kim Kardashian? I’m here to watch Formula 1, not Kim Kardashian." Kardashian, who is the partner of Lewis Hamilton, previously ignored Brundle during his grid walk in Monaco earlier this year. Clarkson suggested that many people interviewed during races have no idea why they are there. He told the presenters that he finds it funny to watch them interview people who would barely know what a car is. He recalled a conversation from that morning about Eddie Irvine in Canada in 1999, where Irvine managed to get back onto the podium after dropping to the back of the field under a red flag. The presenter also said he was not watching when Kim Kardashian spoke to Brundle on the grid in Singapore.