Is Jack Doohan already doomed? What Alpine's sudden signing means

Franco Colapinto’s sudden switch to Alpine has left Jack Doohan’s F1 future hanging in the balance - before it has properly got underway.

The move comes after a stunning rise for the 21-year-old Argentinian, whose rookie Formula 2 season was interrupted so that he could be drafted in at Williams to replace the sacked Logan Sargeant from the Italian Grand Prix.

Colapinto made a spectacular start to life in F1, reaching Q3 and scoring points at just the second attempt in Azerbaijan. He would go on to score five points in the nine grands prix he entered. He quickly established himself as an improvement on Sargeant, who had been struggling.

Colapinto’s eye-catching form as a super sub caught the attention of several teams including Alpine and Red Bull, who were aware there was no room at Williams due to the team already snapping up Carlos Sainz to partner Alex Albon from 2025.

A series of big crashes towards the end of the season took some of the gloss off Colapinto's early performances. While Red Bull’s interest cooled as they opted to rely on their own stable to solve their Sergio Perez dilemma, Alpine remained intrigued by a young driver who had still exceeded expectations.

Colapinto’s commercial potential and sponsors from his native Argentina added to the pull factor, and Alpine held talks with his management towards the end of last year about the possibility of making the switch to Enstone with a view to a future drive.

Alpine executive advisor Flavio Briatore was spotted chatting with Colapinto in the F1 paddock at the penultimate round of the season in Qatar, and Briatore is understood to have been instrumental in pushing for the deal to happen.

Colapinto is now firmly back in the frame for a full-time F1 seat, potentially as early as this season.

Where it leaves Jack Doohan

Thursday’s announcement that Colapinto had joined Alpine’s growing pool of test and reserve drivers on a “multi-year” deal can only be bad news for Doohan.

The 21-year-old Australian finds himself under immense pressure before his grand prix career has truly begun and his F1 future already appears to be in jeopardy.

Doohan, the son of five-time MotoGP champion Mick Doohan, made his F1 debut at the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, where he stood in for Esteban Ocon following the Frenchman’s premature exit from the team.

Doohan qualified last and finished 15th in his first grand prix. He was half a second slower than teammate Pierre Gasly, who scored points in seventh as Alpine looked to provide Doohan with a head start for his F1 preparations.

Briatore has insisted that Doohan will race for Alpine in 2025, at least at the start of the season, which begins with the Australian Grand Prix on 16 March.

Speaking prior to Doohan’s switch was confirmed, Briatore was quoted as telling Le Parisien: “The only thing we can be sure of is death! We’ll start the year with Pierre and Jack, I can guarantee that.”

Briatore went on to indicate that Doohan’s length of stay at Alpine will be dictated by his results.

“After that, we’ll see as the season progresses,” he continued. “I have to get the team in the right condition to get results and the driver is the one who has to conclude the work of nearly 1,000 people behind him. Everyone works for just two people.

“If there’s a driver who isn’t making progress, who isn’t bringing me results, I change him. You can’t be emotional in F1.”

Those early hints from Briatore tally up with suggestions that Doohan has only been signed to a short-term race contract. Colapinto’s hire gives Alpine insurance with a known back-up option should Doohan fail to meet expectations.

Even Williams pointed towards the likelihood of Colapinto replacing Doohan this year as they acknowledged his exit from the team.

"Williams has one of the most formidable driver line-ups on the grid for 2025 and beyond in Alex Albon and Carlos Sainz, so we believe this agreement with Alpine represents Franco’s best chance of securing a race seat in 2025 or 2026,” Williams team boss James Vowles said.

Doohan has been waiting for a long time for his F1 chance and to have it taken away after only a handful of races would be incredibly harsh, but as Briatore alluded to, there can be no room for sentiment when results are paramount.