Alpine’s Driver Shake-Up: Colapinto In, Doohan Out—For Now
The winds of change are blowing through the Alpine Formula 1 garage once again, and this time it’s Argentine rising star Franco Colapinto who finds himself at the centre of the storm. The 21-year-old will replace Jack Doohan in the team’s race seat for the next five grands prix, beginning at Imola later this month, as part of what Alpine describes as a performance-driven evaluation period.
It’s a bold move—one that speaks volumes about the shifting power dynamics and growing urgency inside a team that has struggled to find its footing in the modern F1 era. And as always with Alpine, there’s more going on beneath the surface than a simple driver swap.
Colapinto’s Big Break: A Five-Race Window to Impress
Colapinto, who joined Alpine over the winter in a surprise move from Williams’ development programme, now finds himself with a golden opportunity. For five races—starting at the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix in Imola and ending with a review before the British Grand Prix in July—he’ll be going head-to-head with Pierre Gasly as Alpine tries to assess its long-term driver line-up.
This is no routine promotion. While speculation around Doohan’s future had intensified after the Miami Grand Prix, few expected the team to formalise such a change this early in the season. What’s even more intriguing is that Alpine’s leadership clearly wants to use this five-race stretch as a mini audition. It’s less about punishing Doohan and more about seeing whether Colapinto can seize the moment.
Alpine executive adviser Flavio Briatore—yes, that Flavio Briatore—offered a typically candid explanation.
“Having reviewed the opening races of the season, we have come to the decision to put Franco in the car alongside Pierre for the next five races,” said Briatore. “The field is very closely matched this year, and with the car showing significant improvement compared to last season, this is the right time to trial a new combination. We’re building for 2026, and we need a clear view of our options now.”
Jack Doohan: Professional, But in the Crosshairs
For Jack Doohan, the news stings. The Australian has been a part of the Alpine set-up since last year’s Abu Dhabi Grand Prix and has yet to score a point in the 2025 campaign. He’s the son of MotoGP legend Mick Doohan and came into Formula 1 with high expectations. But in a team as politically volatile as Alpine, potential only takes you so far.
Doohan, to his credit, responded with professionalism.
“This chapter is obviously a tough one to take,” he said in a statement. “Naturally, as a driver, I want to be racing. But I respect the team’s decision, and I remain fully committed to our long-term goals. I’ll keep working, supporting the team, and pushing towards my own objectives.”
He’ll remain the team’s reserve driver during this period—still part of the fold, but no longer in the cockpit.
Flavio’s Fingerprints Are Everywhere
It’s impossible to analyse this latest Alpine shuffle without zooming out and examining the man pulling the strings. Flavio Briatore, the once-banished former Renault boss, is firmly back in the spotlight. Ever since Renault CEO Luca de Meo brought him back into the fold last summer, Briatore has made it clear: stability is not the goal—success is.
Within 12 hours of announcing the Colapinto-Doohan change, Alpine also confirmed that team principal Oliver Oakes had resigned. Oakes was widely viewed within the paddock as a figurehead anyway, with Briatore holding the real authority.
The timing of both announcements, and the swift execution of a dual leadership and driver overhaul, leaves little doubt—Briatore is done playing nice. And he has the clout to reshape Alpine in his image, just as he did during the team’s title-winning days as Benetton and Renault in the 1990s and 2000s.
The Bigger Picture: Alpine’s Identity Crisis
The Colapinto experiment is about more than just driver performance. It also has financial implications. The Argentine brings with him backing from a number of Latin American sponsors—an enticing prospect for a team increasingly conscious of its commercial standing. While nobody inside Alpine will admit it, the added funding almost certainly helped tip the scales.
But the real issue isn’t the drivers—it’s the team’s trajectory as a whole.
Renault’s works team effort has been back in Formula 1 since 2016, and in that time, they’ve set two five-year targets to become competitive. Neither has been met. In fact, Alpine has regressed over the past two seasons, falling further behind the frontrunners and watching customer teams like McLaren and Aston Martin leapfrog them in the pecking order.
Even after last year’s modest revival, where they finished sixth in the constructors’ standings, the start of 2025 has been bleak. After six races, they sit ninth of ten teams with just seven points to their name. The A525 is, at best, the seventh-fastest car on the grid. In this context, a driver change is hardly surprising.
What Lies Ahead: Mercedes Power, Technical Tension
There’s more change on the horizon. Renault has announced it will shut down its long-standing F1 engine programme, meaning Alpine will switch to Mercedes power units from 2026. It’s a seismic shift for a manufacturer team and one that sparked strikes last year at the Viry-Chatillon engine base in France.
Meanwhile, murmurs around the paddock suggest that Briatore’s patience with executive technical director David Sanchez may also be wearing thin. Sanchez, who joined Alpine with high hopes in May last year, has yet to deliver the leap in performance the team desperately needs.
With the technical side under pressure and the driver line-up now in flux, it’s clear Alpine is entering a period of intense transformation.
Colapinto’s Chance, Alpine’s Gamble
As for Franco Colapinto, he’s staying focused on the opportunity at hand.
“These next few races—especially Imola, Monaco, and Barcelona—are going to be intense,” he said. “But I’m ready. I’ll work hard to get up to speed quickly and deliver the best results I can. I want to show what I’m capable of alongside Pierre.”
He’ll have five weekends to make his mark. If he impresses, the seat could be his for the long haul. If not, Doohan may get a second chance—or perhaps Alpine will look elsewhere entirely.
Either way, this is more than a simple mid-season driver rotation. It’s the latest twist in the ongoing Alpine saga—a story of ambition, reinvention, and the relentless pursuit of relevance in the world’s most competitive motorsport.
And knowing Flavio Briatore’s history, there’s no telling what’s next.
