The Austin Grand Prix brought more than just sporting results for the Alpine team. During the final laps, Franco Colapinto executed a maneuver that sparked internal controversy by overtaking his teammate Pierre Gasly, even though the team's engineers had requested that positions be maintained.
The overtaking, which took place on the penultimate lap, not only altered the finishing order but also prompted an immediate reaction from the management of the French team, which decided to sanction the Argentine driver with an internal fine of 100,000 euros, according to Bardeo.News.
However, weeks later, an unexpected detail emerged: Colapinto did not pay the fine out of his own pocket. According to the same source, MercadoLibre's founder, Marcos Galperín, stepped in to cover the sanction. The Argentine businessman, whose group is one of Alpine's main sponsors, apparently saw a valuable advertising opportunity in the incident.
The overtaking, widely broadcast on international transmissions, prominently displayed the MercadoLibre logo on both single-seaters, which resulted in global visibility for the brand. For that reason, Galperín reportedly decided to assume the cost of the penalty in recognition of the media impact achieved.
El logo de Mercado Libre en los alerones de los monoplazas de Alpine
This way, the driver from Pilar managed to put the episode behind him and is now focusing on the next event on the calendar, the Brazilian Grand Prix, which will take place next weekend at the Autódromo José Carlos Pace in Interlagos, in São Paulo.
The controversy, however, exposed the tensions within the French team, where the hierarchy between Gasly and Colapinto remains a sensitive issue ahead of the 2026 season.
