No Argentine race driver rode a Formula 1 car in nearly 20 years, but Franco Colapinto’s exhibition proved the country’s passion for the series remains unstoppable.

“Other F1 drivers see [the support Colapinto has] and can’t believe it,” Colapinto manager Maria Caterineu told the Herald. “Lando Norris even said he wanted to be Franco’s friend to have so many people behind him too. This is simply wonderful.”

Paid tickets sold out weeks in advance, meaning fans rushed to the free-access stands. With over half a million people in attendance, it was no surprise that queues — which started forming at 5 a.m. — circled the Palermo park and stretched over 15 blocks.

As the F1 2026 season race starts, the entry was a convoluted affair, with fans growing increasingly exasperated by long waits, unclear directions and few entry points. However, once the fans took their seats and began exploring the Fan Zone, the event became more than a motoring exhibition.

“It’s crazy, unbelievable,” told the press Alpine F1 head of partner experience Luca Mazzocco. “I’m Italian, so I understand so much passion, even share it, but it’s unbelievable.”

Having been with the team for over 30 years, he insisted he could only compare it to Spain’s support for Fernando Alonso during the days the team was known as Renault F1. The Spaniard had two separate stints with the team, from 2003 to 2006, and then from........

© Buenos Aires Herald