A rough holiday mishap
Franco Colapinto, the 23-year-old Argentine racing driver who competes for Alpine in Formula 1, appeared on ESPN this Thursday, August 20, 2026, and shocked everyone with a revelation that went viral. During the F1 summer break, ahead of the Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort this weekend, he was robbed in Italy. “They took everything from me. I wish they had only taken my mate. Everything: wallet, passport, all my clothes. A disaster. I was left bare-arse”, he recounted with his characteristic humour. For those unfamiliar with Argentine customs, 'mate' is a traditional South American infusion, similar to tea, prepared with dried yerba leaves, and is considered a staple of Argentine life.
The night of the best carbonara
The incident took place in Milan, where Colapinto had parked his car and left all his belongings inside before heading to an Italian restaurant he loves. “I left everything in the car, went to eat at an Italian restaurant that I really like, where they make the best carbonara, and when I came back, there was nothing. Absolutely nothing inside”, he explained. It remains unclear if the theft was targeted or a random act of desperation, but the impact was devastating: the 23-year-old lost his passport, wallet, clothes, and even his thermos emblazoned with the Argentine national football team crest (2022 world champions) and the matera (a traditional bag used to carry and serve mate).
“I have no idea what they did with my matera. My Messi thermos, and my mate which I loved dearly. It was the worst day of my life. A total disaster.”
The 1,200 km journey to recovery
After the theft, Colapinto filed a police report and returned to Monaco. But when he arrived home, he received an unexpected call from the Italian police: “We found your wallet and papers.” Without hesitation, he drove back to Italy. “I went back, and we picked everything up. I did 1,200 kilometers in one day, you can’t imagine how much gas I burned”, he laughed. The effort paid off—he recovered his documents—though the mate itself was gone forever.
Reflection and silver lining
Beyond the scare and the inconvenience, the pilot chose to see the episode as a lesson learned: “It was the worst day of my life. When time passes, you don’t rejoice over a robbery, but you do learn what to do and how to change. It’s not fun to be robbed, but you also learn. I had never been robbed, never had to file a police report. All those procedures are moments where you grow.”
Before his free day, Colapinto had already commented on the robbery on social media with a touch of irony: “Who would have said that Europeans would steal everything from a Latino. Please, they didn’t even leave my matera. I’m sure they won’t like the mate anyway.”
The challenge of Zandvoort
Beyond the robbery, Colapinto now looks ahead to the Dutch Grand Prix with the sprint format. He revealed that he will not have the upgraded package on his car this weekend—only teammate Pierre Gasly will have the new parts—but that the simulator shows great progress: “If it rains, it could be a little better. It’s a track where you don’t stop turning.” The action starts on Friday, August 21, 2026, with Practice 1 at 7:30 AM (Argentine time) and Qualifying at 11:30 AM. Saturday features the Sprint race and Sprint qualifying, and the main race takes place on Sunday, August 23, at 10:00 AM (Argentine time).
Sources: Infobae, TyC Sports y TN