F1 to return to Buenos Aires thanks to Franco Colapinto

F1 is returning to Buenos Aires, and it's all thanks to young Argentine Franco Colapinto.

Colapinto first joined the series in 2024, replacing Logan Sargeant at Williams midway through the season, and the sport instantly gained thousands more fans from South America, cheering on the first Argentinian racer since Gaston Mazzacane in 2000 and 2001.

The 22-year-old has since gone on to gain a full-time seat in F1 with Alpine, after replacing Jack Doohan last season, and he picked up his first point in Alpine colours at the Chinese Grand Prix last month.

Now, Colapinto is set to bring F1 back to the streets of Buenos Aires. F1 has not raced in Argentina since 1998, and the country's most successful ever racer is Juan Manuel Fangio, who claimed four Argentine Grand Prix wins in his career as well as five drivers' championships between 1951-1957.

Colapinto will take part in an exhibition run along the streets of Buenos Aires, driving an old Lotus E20, which was the Enstone-based outfit's 2012 car driven by Kimi Raikkonen and Romain Grosjean.

The car claimed one grand prix victory that season, at the 2012 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

Colapinto will put on the show in front of his fans on April 26, amid the five-week break from F1 caused by the cancellation of the Saudi Arabian and Bahrain Grands Prix.

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Famous Argentinian F1 racers

While Fangio is the only Argentinian F1 world champion, there are plenty from the South American country who have left their mark on the sport.

Carlos Reutemann claimed 12 grands prix victories between 1972-1982, finishing second in the 1981 world championship.

Jose Froilan Gonzalez raced in the sport at the same time as Fangio, and himself claimed two grand prix victories.

The only other drivers from Argentina to have claimed grand prix podiums in the sport are Onofre Marimon and Carlos Menditeguy, but Colapinto will be hoping to change that this season with his Alpine team who have been reinvigorated by their new Mercedes power unit partnership.

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