The six F1 races rookie Jack Doohan has taken part in so far could very well end up being the extent of his career with Alpine—a team he has been a part of since 2022. The Enstone-based squad is on the verge of bringing in Franco Colapinto to replace him, before Doohan could even be properly judged.
Doohan’s start to life in F1 hasn’t been great. He’s one of only four drivers on the grid who have yet to score a single point, and crashes have further hurt his cause.
However, the sword was already hanging over Doohan’s head before the season began. Colapinto joined the Enstone outfit as a reserve driver, reportedly due to his strong financial backing and significant popularity in Latin America. Although Alpine didn’t officially admit it, there was widespread belief in the paddock that Doohan already had one foot out of the French team before the season began.
Alpine want Colapinto to take his place, a driver who has already proven his merit with Williams in the nine races he took part in last year as Logan Sargeant’s replacement. But many in the F1 community feel Doohan should have gotten more time. Among them is journalist Adam Cooper.
Cooper reminded his followers on X (formerly Twitter) of the speculations last winter surrounding Colapinto’s arrival to the team. Nothing was official, but reports suggested that Doohan had just six races to prove to the Alpine bosses that he deserved the seat over the Argentine driver. Even veteran photojournalist Kym Illman had predicted that the Miami GP could be his last race in F1.
Now, the timeline matches. Ahead of the Emilia-Romagna GP in two weeks, an announcement seems to be imminent.
“Six races, with the huge pressure the situation created and which led to the odd error, was not a fair chance. He deserved better,” Cooper wrote on X (formerly Twitter).
We await formal confirmation of @jackdoohan33‘s abrupt departure from the @AlpineF1Team seat – with the timing just as predicted in the winter. Six races, with the huge pressure the situation created and which led to the odd error, was not a fair chance. He deserved better.
— Adam Cooper (@adamcooperF1) May 5, 2025
Unfortunately, Doohan’s last outing at the Miami International Autodrome was nothing to write home about. The Aussie youngster retired because of a collision with Racing Bulls’ Liam Lawson, which potentially sealed the deal.
Overall, however, there’s little his reported replacement Colapinto could do with the A525, which has a thoroughly underwhelming package. Pierre Gasly has fared slightly better in the other Alpine car, but has just scored seven points so far, sitting P12 in the standings.
Colapinto’s hope? To finish races cleanly and avoid adding to the damage repair bills, which Doohan contributed heavily to.
