Tsunoda and Colapinto walk away from heavy qualifying crashes at Imola

IMOLA, Italy: Qualifying for the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix at Imola took a dramatic turn on Saturday as Red Bull’s Yuki Tsunoda and Alpine rookie Franco Colapinto suffered heavy crashes in Q1, forcing two red flag stoppages.

Tsunoda’s terrifying accident came at turn five, where his car spun and slammed into the tyre wall backwards with such force that it lifted off the ground, flipped over, and landed momentarily upside down before righting itself. The Japanese driver, though visibly shaken, managed to climb out unaided and was taken to the circuit’s medical centre for precautionary checks.

Racing Bulls driver Liam Lawson, who lost the Red Bull seat to Tsunoda earlier this year, reacted with shock over the team radio after seeing the crash replay: “Oh my god! I just saw the video. Is he OK?”

Following a 15-minute delay to repair the barriers, the session resumed but was swiftly interrupted again. This time it was Franco Colapinto, making his long-awaited F1 debut with Alpine, who brought out the red flags. The Argentine rookie lost control after running onto the grass at Tamburello, spinning and crashing head-on into the barriers, destroying his front suspension.

Both drivers were reported to be unhurt, but the incidents left teams with a major repair job and raised concerns about grip and track conditions in a tense qualifying session at the iconic Italian circuit.