Franco Colapinto returns to Interlagos this weekend for the Brazilian Grand Prix, the 20th round of the 2026 Formula 1 season, with the first two free practice sessions scheduled for Friday, November 6. The Alpine driver arrives in São Paulo after losing an eighth-place finish in Mexico to a penalty, according to Clarin.com. The race weekend runs through Sunday, November 8, at the Autódromo José Carlos Pace.
Why it matters
The Brazilian round is one of four remaining opportunities for teams to add points in both championships, and Clarin.com reports that the internal comparison at Alpine will draw particular scrutiny. Colapinto sits 12th in the drivers' standings on 27 points, while teammate Pierre Gasly is 10th with 42 — a gap of 15 points built over the season rather than any single result.
Clarin.com notes that the margin does not fully capture their week-to-week form. In Mexico, Colapinto had placed inside the top ten before the sanction dropped him down the order.
The weekend also marks Kimi Antonelli's first race as world champion. The Mercedes driver, who turned 20 this year, clinched the title in Mexico by finishing third behind Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton, becoming the youngest champion in the sport's history, Clarin.com reports.
A circuit with difficult memories
Interlagos carries mixed associations for Colapinto. In November 2024, while driving for Williams, he crashed heavily during a rain-soaked Brazilian Grand Prix. According to Clarin.com, he lost control while trying to close on the queue running behind the Safety Car and hit the barriers along the main straight, bringing out a red flag and ending his race early. He had also crashed during qualifying that weekend.
Two years on, he returns with a different team and more experience at the top level. Clarin.com reports that he arrived at the track on Friday morning signing autographs and posing for photographs with fans in the Paddock Club area.
The publication also noted that Buenos Aires city government chief Jorge Macri and his sports secretary, Fabián Turnes, were at the circuit and planned to meet Formula 1 chief executive Stefano Domenicali to present progress on renovation work at the Argentine capital's racetrack.
Weekend format and where to watch
Unlike some recent editions, the 2026 Brazilian Grand Prix will not include a sprint race, so the standard format applies: three practice sessions followed by qualifying. The first two practices take place on Friday, with the final session and qualifying on Saturday afternoon. Qualifying will run through the usual three stages — Q1, Q2 and Q3 — with the ten fastest drivers from the first two segments contesting pole position.
For viewers in Argentina, Clarin.com lists Fox Sports for television coverage, subject to its published schedule, and F1 TV Pro, the series' official streaming platform, which offers onboard cameras and live timing.
Clarin.com also reports that several of the 22 race drivers will sit out part of Friday's running, as teams are required to hand some practice time to young reserve drivers during the season. It adds that the drive from central São Paulo to the circuit took about an hour and a half on Friday, as traffic built up on the first day of official track activity.
The circuit itself remains one of the calendar's most familiar venues, known for elevation change, technical corners and weather that can shift quickly.
What to watch
With four rounds left, watch whether Colapinto can close the gap to Gasly at a track where he has unfinished business — and whether Antonelli's first weekend as champion changes anything about how Mercedes approaches the remaining races.
