Franco Colapinto's strong arrival in Formula 1 has created a small earthquake that threatens to shake up the 2025 grid amid rumours linking him to Red Bull's teams.
The 21-year-old has impressed since replacing Logan Sargeant at Williams, having scored points in two of his six outings with the Grove-based team.
Although Colapinto doesn't have a full-time seat for 2025, Williams boss James Vowles admitted the team was actively working with rival squads to find a spot for him on the grid next year.
Speculation during the Brazilian Grand Prix weekend went as far as linking him with a Red Bull drive alongside Max Verstappen, taking over the seat of the struggling Sergio Perez.
The interest in the Argentine by Red Bull was confirmed by the team's executives themselves during the Interlagos weekend.
Red Bull boss Christian Horner visited the Williams hospitality to meet Vowles – a meeting that was not missed by those present in the paddock.
While Colapinto is attracting interest from Red Bull, the question remains as to where he would be placed should he end up joining the energy drinks company's roster.
According to rumours picked up over the Interlagos weekend, Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko sees Liam Lawson, who has made a strong return to F1 since the United States GP, as Verstappen's team-mate in 2025.
In this scenario, an RB seat would be available for Colapinto alongside Yuki Tsunoda.
However, speculation suggests Horner's plan would be different, as he would prefer to promote Colapinto directly to Red Bull alongside Verstappen, in which case Lawson would be heading for his first full season in F1 at RB.
Horner would be interested in this scenario in order to maximise the financial potential of Colapinto, whose popularity has exploded in Argentina and throughout Central and South America.
The move would not be without risk, however, given Colapinto's limited experience.
Horner's vision also would not support the work of the Red Bull Junior Team, a programme that was once flourishing but has stalled in recent years.
For Marko, the possibility of promoting Lawson represents a return to the process that until a decade ago ensured the team was able to draw successfully from its own pool of young drivers.
Placing Colapinto alongside Verstappen after four seasons in which the role was held by Perez would be a blow to the junior programme, and Red Bull would find itself in the situation of locking its youngsters into RB for the fifth consecutive season.
In the past this has also been influenced by the calibre of the drivers, but Lawson appears to be doing everything he needs to do to be a candidate for a role in the main team.
At the moment, however, Colapinto is still a Williams driver. Vowles has raised the bar quite high for those interested in him, with rumours claiming a demand of $20 million.
On top of that, a wild rumour has also emerged this week linking Colapinto with Alpine, despite the team having officially confirmed Pierre Gasly and Jack Doohan for 2025.
But not all the choices have been made by the current management.
Also endorsing this hypothesis was a test run by Alpine last Tuesday in Qatar with the 2022 car, a test that was intended for junior driver Victor Martins and Doohan, but Gasly surprisingly also took to the track.
Gasly’s presence is considered by some as a desire from the team to have feedback about Doohan's performance.
