Last Updated on April 10 2025, 8:36 am
Colapinto circles Doohan’s Alpine seat amid testing turmoil and mounting pressure – The Alpine Formula One garage is facing mounting internal pressure as Franco Colapinto closes in on Jack Doohan’s seat, following a reported secret test session that’s caused both excitement and controversy.
With Doohan’s debut season in Formula One struggling to gain traction, Colapinto appears to be making an increasingly compelling case for promotion, despite questions over the reliability of the data that emerged from the test. With internal team dynamics, political manoeuvring and paddock murmurings all combining, the future of Alpine’s driver line-up looks anything but settled.
Season slipping away from Doohan
Jack Doohan’s entry into the 2025 Formula One season was greeted with anticipation and a degree of patience by Alpine, who promoted him to a race seat amidst significant restructuring. But as the first quarter of the season draws to a close, Doohan remains one of just five drivers without a point.
His lacklustre performances have not only relegated Alpine to the back of the pack, but also cast a shadow of doubt over his ability to lead the team into a new era of competitiveness.
The Japanese Grand Prix at Suzuka was particularly telling. Despite flashes of aggression in previous races, Doohan seemed completely at sea in the high-speed corners and undulating flow of the historic circuit. While the Alpine A524 was consistently off the pace, internal metrics reportedly show Doohan being consistently outperformed by team-mate Pierre Gasly in both qualifying trim and race pace, adding to the frustration of the team management.
A quiet but telling test at Monza
While Doohan toiled in Japan, Alpine quietly conducted a private test session in Monza, away from the media spotlight and public scrutiny. The session featured Franco Colapinto behind the wheel of the 2023-spec A523 – last season’s machinery still potent enough to deliver meaningful feedback – and Paul Aron, another of Alpine’s young talents in the driver academy.
The test was not part of any formal young driver evaluation day, and for this reason its emergence has stirred considerable speculation about the team’s intentions.
According to reports from the Italian branch of Motorsport.com, Colapinto didn’t just complete laps – he set the timing screens ablaze.
In supposedly similar conditions, he recorded a best lap that was around half a second faster than Aron’s the day before. More tellingly, in a race simulation run, Colapinto was reportedly seven-tenths of a second faster per lap, suggesting both sheer speed and racing consistency.
But not everyone is convinced. Observers at plantf1.com have pointed out that the comparisons between the two drivers may be flawed due to variable conditions – changing temperatures, wind direction and track evolution could all have affected the times. It also remains unclear whether both drivers were running the same engine modes or fuel loads, which could dramatically alter lap times. Nevertheless, the message from within Alpine seems to be that Colapinto impressed – and may have done enough to cause a stir in the driver pecking order.
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Colapinto’s road back to the F1 spotlight
Franco Colapinto’s rise has been anything but conventional. A mid-season replacement for Logan Sargeant at Williams in 2024, he showed glimpses of great potential but was ultimately passed over for a permanent seat. Williams opted for experience instead, signing Carlos Sainz as Alex Albon’s partner for 2025, effectively closing the door on Colapinto’s prospects at Grove.
But his brief time in the Williams cockpit, coupled with impressive performances in the junior formula and feedback from the engineers, was enough to pique Alpine’s interest.
Now part of Alpine’s test and reserve driver setup, Colapinto is being groomed as a serious candidate for a race seat – possibly sooner than anyone anticipated. His presence at the Monza test, reportedly organised in consultation with Alpine’s technical staff and with team principal Ollie Oakes kept in the loop, lends weight to the theory that Alpine are already preparing him for a transition into the race team.
So the Monza session was not just a mileage-building exercise. It was a thinly veiled audition, and Colapinto seems to have put in a performance that has accelerated Alpine’s internal conversations.
Doohan under internal and external pressure
Jack Doohan’s situation is particularly delicate. Not only is he battling with a car that many in the paddock describe as fundamentally flawed, but he’s also caught up in a web of political manoeuvring behind the scenes.
Flavio Briatore, Alpine’s controversial advisor and talent scout, is both Doohan’s manager and a key figure in the team’s decision-making structure. His influence is said to be the main reason why Doohan hasn’t already been sidelined.
According to Felix Görner, a journalist writing for sport.de, Doohan’s survival in his seat is hanging by a thread. “Only his own manager, Flavio Briatore, and thus the Alpine boss, is currently saving him from being sacked,” Görner explained in a recent column. The implication is clear: without Briatore’s backing the team might have already opted for a change.
Meanwhile, Speedweek.com has added fuel to the fire, citing “murmurs in the paddock” that Alpine is preparing to install Colapinto in the second seat. Insiders suggest that the decision is no longer a matter of ‘if’, but rather ‘when’. That ‘when’ could come as early as the summer break if Doohan’s performances do not improve significantly.
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The test crash that didn’t derail Colapinto’s chances
Interestingly, Colapinto’s test in Monza wasn’t without its faults. He reportedly ran wide during one of his stints, ending up in the gravel trap and damaging the car’s underfloor. The incident required an hour-long repair in the pits and temporarily halted the day’s programme.
However, it did not seem to dampen Alpine’s enthusiasm for the 21-year-old Argentinian. The raw pace and composure he displayed for the rest of the session seems to have outweighed the lone mistake, especially when viewed through the lens of a driver still honing his F1 craft.
From Alpine’s perspective, the risk of grooming Colapinto now – while keeping Doohan in the hot seat – allows them to play with both hands. If Doohan suddenly finds his form, Alpine will benefit. If he doesn’t, they can transition to Colapinto with a driver who has already logged laps in the car, interacted with the engineers and become familiar with the team’s processes.
What is next for Alpine?
For now, the team is maintaining an outward sense of unity. Publicly, they are supporting Doohan and emphasizing the need for more consistent bike performance before making snap judgments about their driver line-up. Behind the scenes, however, the picture is much more fluid.
Alpine are also under immense pressure to stabilise the team and restore competitiveness. Restructuring following Laurent Rossi’s departure, ongoing management shake-ups and a bike that has failed to deliver on its promises all mean that the team is desperate for a spark. That spark could come from Colapinto – either as a motivational force pushing Doohan to improve, or as a direct replacement.
The next few races will be crucial. If Doohan can respond to the pressure and start scoring points, he may be able to hold on to his place for the season. But if the current trend continues – and Colapinto continues to impress behind closed doors – it seems increasingly likely that a mid-season driver swap could be Alpine’s next major move.
One thing is for sure, the team’s silence on the Monza test is telling in itself. In F1, silence is rarely neutral. It often means change is coming. And for Jack Doohan that silence could be the sound of an opportunity slipping away.
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With over 30 years of experience in Formula 1 as an insider journalist, I have built trusted connections across the paddock, from race engineers and mechanics to senior team figures. At The Judge 13, I and a handful of trusted colleagues share exclusive Formula 1 news, expert analysis and behind-the-scenes stories you will not find in mainstream motorsport media.
The mistakes in nearly every article lead me to believe your only knowledge of F1 has been learned from D2S. Bruno Famin is not the team principal, he was replaced with Ollie Oakes
Quite right, I’m getting too old for this writing business! Thanks for pointing out my error