Jack Doohan bullish on F1 future despite Franco Colapinto threat

Jack Doohan says he is looking forward to “cementing” his place at Alpine as he prepares for his rookie F1 season.

Doohan is gearing up for what will be his first full F1 campaign but speculation is already ramping up about how certain his future is following Alpine’s decision to sign Franco Colapinto as a reserve driver.

Colapinto is seen a direct threat for Doohan and his arrival will ramp up the pressure on the 22-year-old Australian and son of five-time MotoGP champion Mick Doohan.

Williams agreed to release Colapinto because they have no room to offer him a race seat due to signing Carlos Sainz from Ferrari to partner Alex Albon.

But Doohan, who finished 15th on his race debut for Alpine at the final grand prix of 2024 in Abu Dhabi, gave a bullish response amid the ongoing rumours at the Autosport Awards.

“It’s a super special time for me. I’m stoked to be part of it,” Doohan told Sky Sports.

“I’ve been with the team all last week and the start of this week to spend a great day capturing our moments ahead of the year.

“I’m very motivated. I look forward to just getting on track and doing the work with my hands and my feet and steering that car as best as I can.

“To be coming in, to be one of the 20 drivers on the grid, it’s super special and I look forward to cementing my place here for the future.”

Alpine vow to give Doohan ‘fair crack’

Alpine boss Oliver Oakes has insisted that Doohan will get a “fair crack” to prove himself during his debut F1 season alongside Pierre Gasly.

"It's been a little bit harsh on Jack, some of the stuff that was written by the keyboard warriors there, and he's getting his fair crack at it next year," Oakes said during an appearance on the James Allen On F1 podcast.

"And I think the intention there isn't to put [pressure] on his shoulders. It's genuinely to give the team options further down the line. And for me F1 is fine margins.

“There's a load of people who are depending on a driver to deliver each weekend, and we need to make sure we've got the best drivers in the race car, not just now, but also in the future.”

It has been reported that Doohan only signed a short-term contract with Alpine that potentially gives the French outfit freedom to make a driver change if they see fit.