‘I control you’: F1 kingpin’s frightening warning to Aussie Jack Doohan

Australia’s newest F1 driver has received an ominous warning from his team boss amid fears his seat is already under threat.

Jack Doohan is under no illusions he needs to hit the ground running in his first Formula One season.

The 22-year-old Australian made his F1 debut at last year’s season ending Abu Grand Prix and was elevated from reserve driver to a full-time seat at Alpine alongside Pierre Gasly.

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Doohan will be one of six young drivers entering their first full F1 season in 2025, which gets underway at the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne next weekend.

But Alpine’s off-season signing of highly touted Argentinian Franco Colapinto has put the pressure on Doohan, with a ready made replacement arleady waiting in the wings.

Colapinto made his debut with Williams last season and impressed with multiple top 10 finishes, but Carlos Sainz’s move to Williams left Colapinto without a spot on the grid.

Alpine executive adviser Flavio Briatore has made it clear Doohan will have a handful of races to impress before the team considers putting Colapinto in the car.

A scene in the new season of Netflix’s Drive to Survive documentary depicts an ominous discussion between Doohan and Briatore as the team boss makes it clear in no uncertain terms where the Aussie stands.

The veteran Italian boss tells Doohan in a meeting: “I control you every millimetre.”

It’s a fairly frightening message and Doohan looks back at Briatore with a slightly fearful expression on his face.

Watch the tense exchange in the video player above

Flavio Briatore ke Jack Doohan: "I control you every milimeter."

🥶 pic.twitter.com/8iokjuabz6

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Doohan, the son of five-time MotoGP champion Mick Doohan, bristled at suggestions Colapinto’s signing had undermined his seat at Alpine when asked about the reserve driver at F1’s season launch last month.

“I’ve been told he’s reserve driver,” Doohan said in response to a question about whether he felt pressure from Colapinto’s signing.

“If it’s someone inside the team, outside the team, anyone that’s performing well, you’re always going to have pressure on your shoulders because you’re in such a cutthroat sport.

“Whatever pressure there may be, I look forward to enjoying that, embracing it and just enjoying my Formula 1 season.”

When asked a follow up question about the topic, Doohan fired back: “Was that a question?” “I was a 21-year-old reserve driver last year with a long-term contract.

“No, I don’t (feel undermined). Maybe I should, I don’t know. I don’t really understand that as a question. But yeah, definitely not.”

Jack Doohan is under pressure to perform quickly this season. (Photo by Clive Rose/Getty Images)

According to Swiss publication Blick, Briatore was asked during F1 testing in Bahrain how long Doohan would last at the team. He reportedly responded simply by glancing at his watch.

Alpine team principal Oli Oakes has said Doohan would at least have a few races to prove himself.

“But I think also he should be given a bit of space to just get on with it for a few rounds,” Oakes said, per ESPN.

“We’re here to go racing, we want the best driver in the car, the best engine in the car.”

“Flavio said it, didn’t he? We’re starting the season with Jack and Pierre, and then let’s see how it all goes.”

Alpine reportedly paid Williams 20 million euros (A$34 million) to recruit Colapinto on a long-term loan deal.

Williams team principal James Vowles said Alpine “represents Franco’s best chance of securing a race seat in 2025 or 2026”.

“The best chance he has is with Alpine as far as (getting on the grid),” Vowles said at the F1 season launch, per ESPN.

“That’s why he’s there. “I don’t mean that to the detriment of Jack — I hope Jack has a successful time — but ultimately Franco is my driver that I want back in that car.”

Alpine's Australian driver Jack Doohan. (Photo by HENRY NICHOLLS / AFP)

Franco Colapinto has joined Alpine as reserve driver. (Photo by BENJAMIN CREMEL / AFP)

Former F1 driver and ex-race steward Johnny Herbert said Doohan won’t have much time to show he is worthy of a full-time seat.

“Flavio Briatore will expect him to be on it when [Doohan] gets to Australia, and he expects him to be on it all the way through the weekend in Australia, and he expects him to make his point,” Herbert said, per CasinoApps.com.

“Sadly, you can’t have sympathy. That never works. It never does you any good at all. It doesn’t work like that and the pressure that every driver is under, especially when they come into Formula 1 for the first time, is huge.

“There are those rumours already out there that (Jack Doohan) only going to last a race or two and then he’s going to get moved aside. That happens. It is not something new.

“There are drivers that have lost their drives because they weren’t able to perform. That’s what you’re up against, the very, very best in the world.

“Jack has got to be able to utilise what he’s learned in Bahrain. Analyse absolutely everything and apply that when he gets in the car.”

Originally published as ‘I control you’: F1 kingpin’s frightening warning to Aussie Jack Doohan