Aussie Jack Doohan’s F1 team hits back at grim ‘borrowed time’ prediction

Australia’s Jack Doohan is under “massive pressure” to keep his spot in Formula 1 amid mounting speculation he’s on “borrowed time”.

Australia’s Jack Doohan has been warned his F1 career is already on “borrowed time” as his team moved to reassure the youngster his seat wasn’t in danger.

Doohan made his F1 debut for Alpine at the season ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix in December after Esteban Ocon departed the team as part of a deal to undergo post-season testing with his new team, Haas.

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It had been confirmed Doohan, 22, would be promoted from Alpine’s reserve driver to a full-time seat in 2025 alongside Frenchman Pierre Gasly.

But earlier this month, Alpine announced it had signed Franco Colapinto as test and reserve driver on a multi-year deal in a move that many commentators predict could spell trouble for Doohan.

Colapinto impressed with multiple top 10 finishes after replacing Logan Sargeant at Williams midway through last season.

The 21-year-old from Argentina is considered by many to be too talented not to be on the F1 grid, and Alpine reportedly paid as much as 20 million euros to poach him from the Williams stable.

Franco Colapinto has been pegged as a future F1 star. (Photo by Clive Mason/Getty Images)

Jack Doohan could be under pressure very quickly. (Photo by Rudy Carezzevoli/Getty Images)

Williams team principal James Vowles said they have “one of the most formidable driver line-ups on the grid for 2025” 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,” Vowles said.

Alpine’s executive director Flavio Briatore, meanwhile, described Colapinto as “among the best young talents in motorsport right now” after making an impressive start to his F1 career.

Doohan is one of six drivers who will be beginning their first fulltime F1 season at the Australian Grand Prix in March.

But with Colapinto waiting in the wings, Doohan will be under pressure to perform in the first part of the season.

“I think Jack Doohan will believe he’s on borrowed time already,” former F1 driver Johnny Herbert told Casinoutanspelpaus.io.

“When I’m speaking to people, they feel exactly the same thing. Doohan has got to deliver, and if he doesn’t deliver against Pierre Gasly, I know Flavio Briatore very well, Doohan will be out.

“He’ll be out as quick as he blinks. So pressure’s on his shoulders now for him to perform.

“That’s part of the sport, unfortunately, especially in Formula 1, it’s not always full of budding roses.

“It’s a massive amount of pressure for Doohan, but that’s what the deal is. You have to get in the car and you have to perform.

Franco Colapinto and Jack Doohan.

“And Gasly is a driver that is very comfortable in the team at the present time. There’s a lot of support for him in that team, obviously being a Frenchman.”

Doohan was in the simulator this week, while Colapinto underwent a seat fitting, posting a selfie smiling with the team’s helmet on.

Social media posts featuring Colapinto in an Alpine jumpsuit are going berserk with huge engagement from his fans

Much like the shadow of Liam Lawson loomed over Daniel Ricciardo in the VCARB garage last season before his mid-season axing, the same fate could well await Doohan.

“But now it’s up to Doohan,” Herbert added. “He’s got a massive amount of pressure on his shoulders because Franco Colapinto will be there in the back of the garage.

“He’ll be there on TV with him sort of over the shoulder of Briatore and wherever it may be. “That’s where all those little elements of doubt start to come into play. And doubt is something you definitely do not want.”

Alpine team principal Oli Oakes has clarified that Doohan will be given a “fair crack” to show he has what it takes to keep his seat.

“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,” he told the James Allen on F1 podcast.

Alpine Executive Advisor Flavio Briatore says the team won’t be afraid to make a change. (Photo by MANAURE QUINTERO / AFP)

“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.

“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”.

Colapinto emerged as a breakout star, challenging his Williams teammate Alex Albon in the second half of the season.

His potential as a future star has attracted sponsors and given a fulltime seat, his popularity could explode given F1’s heritage in Argentina and South America.

“We’ll start the year with Pierre and Jack, I can guarantee that. After that, we’ll see as the season progresses,” Briatore said previously.

“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.”

Pre-season testing begins in Bahrain on February 26, before the 2025 season gets underway in Melbourne on March 16.

Originally published as Aussie Jack Doohan’s F1 team hits back at grim ‘borrowed time’ prediction