Alpine Defends Franco Colapinto Amid Jeremy Clarkson’s Controversial Remark About the Argentine

Following the comments of popular TV presenter Jeremy Clarkson with regard to Alpine’s Franco Colapinto, the French outfit has issued a statement extending full support to the Argentine driver. The current Clarkson’s Farm presenter had joked about Colapinto’s Argentine origins as part of his grid penalty, creating a stir in the F1 community.

Following the incident, Alpine stated (via Motorsport), “We at Alpine are aware of the comments made by a team guest in a recent television interview in Austin. Franco (Colapinto) is our driver and has our full support.”

Alpine made sure not to name Clarkson or any other entity in their statement, but the disclaimer left little room for doubt that it closely followed the words of the 66-year-old.

Speaking to Martin Brundle ahead of Saturday’s qualifying session in Austin, Clarkson discussed a host of topics with the F1 presenter, including the focus on Kim Kardashian in the paddock. But what became a bigger talking point was the Briton’s comments about Colapinto, given there was serious history involved as well.

Why Clarkson’s Comments About Franco Colapinto Caused a Stir

Speaking to Brundle outside the Alpine hospitality, Clarkson touched upon the grid penalty handed to Colapinto for taking on a fourth electronics unit this season. Keeping his candor unchecked, the 66-year-old claimed that the penalty handed to the Alpine driver was “a grid penalty for being Argentinian.”

He added, “Probably I’d give him one for that. But anyway, that’s just because of what happened when we went there.” Clarkson’s comments referred to the time Top Gear shot an episode in Patagonia in 2014.

Clarkson drove a Porsche 928 with the number plate H982 FKL. The locals interpreted the number as a reference to the 1982 Falklands War, and protests quickly broke out in Ushuaia, with war veterans demonstrating outside the crew’s hotel.

The situation would soon escalate with the team getting pelted with stones, ultimately having to abandon everything before fleeing to Chile across the border.

BBC would later issue a statement that the licence plate was simply a coincidence, with the show’s producer Andy Wilman stating that rumors about the plate being changed for the episode were completely untrue.

Not the Only Controversy Jeremy Clarkson Stirred Up

Taking center stage at the F1 paddock with Brundle at his side, Clarkson, in true Top Gear fashion, did not bother putting a filter on his thoughts. Aside from the Colapinto comments, the 66-year-old also had an issue with the focus on Kardashian in the paddock.

The former ‘The Grand Tour’ co-presenter claimed that “There are people here who don’t even know what a car is. Why do I care about Kim Kardashian? I’m just here to watch Formula 1.”

Notably, the famed American personality has never made an appearance at the US GP, but now that she’s dating Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton, several media reports claim that she will be in attendance during Sunday’s race. And it was this rumor that gave way to Clarkson’s comments regarding Kardashian.

Apart from the rumored attendance in Austin, Kardashian’s last appearance at a Formula 1 race came in Singapore, where the 46-year-old saw Hamilton finish the race in P6 after a botched strategy call. Before that, Kardashian was seen cheering her partner along during the Monaco GP.

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