Aussie Jack Doohan to take part in audition for Alpine F1 seat

Australian young gun Jack Doohan is set to take part in a private testing session doubling as an audition for a vacant Formula 1 seat.

Jack Doohan is in the mix for Alpine's F1 seat.

Australian young gun Jack Doohan is set to take part in an audition of sorts for Alpine’s vacant Formula 1 seat as his chances of snagging a spot on the 2023 grid grow by the day.

Alpine is on the hunt to sign a second driver to join Esteban Ocon after Fernando Alonso moved to Aston Martin and it was blindsided by reserve driver Oscar Piastri defecting to McLaren.

Doohan is part of Alpine’s junior Academy but has rocketed into contention for an F1 seat after showing sensational late-season form in Formula 2, including a victory in the feature race in Belgium.

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The 19-year-old is currently fourth in the F2 standings with one round left in the season. Newly-crowned F2 champion Felipe Drugovich will join Aston Martin as its F1 reserve driver next year.

Alpine CEO Laurent Rossi has made it clear the team would prefer a driver with F1 experience.

“We need to find a driver that’s capable of scoring big points right away,” Rossi said.

“This basically leads us towards a more senior driver if you will, but at the same that is capable to grow with us. So those are the criteria we use at the moment.

“(Team principal) Otmar (Szafnauer) is leading the process: seeing all of the drivers discussing with them, assessing options, assessing them here, potentially assessing them in tests. So I guess it’s going to be a process that is going to last a little bit.

Jack Doohan is in the mix for Alpine's F1 seat. Photo: Instagram.

“We want to make the right decision and there’s no hurry.”

The most obvious options based on that criteria would be Daniel Ricciardo or Pierre Gasly, but they both come with complications.

Ricciardo has said he would be open to returning to the French team but he wants to take the time to assess all his options before making a decision on his future.

The Australian is considering taking a year off from Formula 1 with an eye to returning to the grid in 2024.

Recruiting Gasly from AlphaTauri is tricky, with Red Bull intent on only releasing the Frenchman from its junior team if American IndyCar star Colton Herta can take his place at AlphaTauri.

But the chances of that happening appear slim as Herta doesn’t have enough points required for the ‘super licence’ required to drive in F1 — and it’s unlikely the sport’s governing body will budge and give him an exception.

It means Alpine may have to recruit a younger driver and to help decide, the team will hold a private testing session at the Hungaroring in Hungary in the lead up to the Singapore Grand Prix in early October.

Multiple outlets are reporting Doohan, Herta and Nyck de Vries will drive an old Alpine F1 car in the test.

Red Bull is desperate to get Colton Herta into F1. (Photo by Greg Doherty/Getty Images)

de Vries finished ninth at last weekend’s Italian Grand Prix in an impressive debut after subbing in for Williams’ Alex Albon, who has been hospitalised with appendicitis.

The Dutchman is firming to replace the struggling Nicholas Latifi next season, but he could also find himself at Haas.

The pressure will be on for the three F1 hopefuls to perform at the testing session.

Doohan has already taken part in Alpine’s F1 testing program this year and an impressive outing could make him the frontrunner to take the seat left by Alonso.

F1 broadcaster Will Buxton tweeted: “Team apparently has a private test day next week, Doohan thought to be leading with de Vries and Herta also rumoured. I believe chat of (Sebastian) Vettel and/or (Mick) Schumacher being involved is massively wide of the mark.”

Asked whether Alpine was considering Doohan for its spare seat, Rossi said: ““Yeah, absolutely.

“Jack certainly has a very good sense of timing, because he’s performing immensely at the moment.

“To be honest, we knew already he was very fast, the raw speed he has, but he has gained in maturity a lot. It shows on the track, but also off track. I mean, the conversations we have are very impressive. I think something clicked; he made a step, which is really good.”

Who will be driving for Alpine next season? (Photo by Rudy Carezzevoli/Getty Images)

But the Alpine CEO believes Doohan would be better suited having another year or two at a smaller team before having to deal with the pressure of driving for a top team.

“Irrespective of his value, we still believe that the best path for a young driver is to potentially go in a team where you have a bit of less pressure to deliver,” Rossi said.

“I’d rather have him damage his first wing somewhere else; find his limits in a new car, because the step is big from an F2 to an F1.

“It’s what everyone does elsewhere. That’s why George (Russell), despite his amazing talents, same pedigree, and Charles (Leclerc) as well, they need to basically hone their skills in a big machine that is much faster than the F2 for a year or two. So that’s the plan for Jack.

“That’s not to say we’re not considering him, because his run of form is impressive. So we’re looking at him.

“But again, we are still keeping in mind the main criteria, which is being ready to score points right away, and help us continue growing by developing the car.

“So we need someone who’s capable of showing the way alongside Esteban. We can’t develop a car on only one side of the garage.”

Originally published as Aussie Jack Doohan to take part in audition for Alpine F1 seat