Franco Colapinto’s manager has moved to condemn abusive fans leaving comments to Alpine ahead of the F1 2025 campaign.

This comes amid swirling speculation over Jack Doohan’s future as an Alpine F1 driver, with Colapinto having arrived as reserve after an impressive introduction to Formula 1 with Williams.

Franco Colapinto manager: ‘Doing him more harm than good’

Additional reporting by Thomas Maher

Despite turning heads last season at Williams with five points scored from nine races after replacing Logan Sargeant, Colapinto was left without a place on the F1 2025 grid as Williams already had Carlos Sainz and Alex Albon in place on multi-year deals, while no opening elsewhere emerged.

But with Williams committing to finding a fresh breakthrough for Colapinto, a deal that saw him become Alpine reserve was seen as his best chance of returning to the grid, intensifying speculation that Doohan could struggle to hang on to his seat as he enters his rookie F1 season.

The talk has continued to rumble on with neither Alpine executive advisor Flavio Briatore nor team principal Oliver Oakes moving to assure Doohan that his seat is safe.

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

“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.”

Meanwhile, when Oakes was asked by media, including PlanetF1.com, if he would quash there and then the ‘line that Jack’s got five or six grands prix’ to prove himself, he responded: “It’s not my line!

“I think we’ve been really honest as a team as to what we’re doing. I’m pretty chilled on it.

“I think it would be nice, I keep saying it, but just let Jack just get on with it, and also let the team get on with it to be honest.”

He added: “I get everybody has an opinion. Everyone can be a keyboard warrior as well. It’s very simple, though, isn’t it?

“We’re here to go racing the best driver in the car, the best engine in the car. And from my side, I was pretty open that Jack, as Flavio said it, we’re starting the season with Jack and Pierre, and then let’s see how it all goes.”

And Jamie Campbell-Walter, director of Bullet Sports Management which represents Colapinto, has ordered the Argentine’s fans to stop acting with “abuse and arrogance” towards Alpine.

His message came in the form of a reply to an X post, which had urged Colapinto’s fans to ‘stop commenting nonsense on Alpine’s account’.

“Well said!” Campbell-Walter responded.

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“The haters who think they help Franco, you are doing him more harm than good.

“Insults to the team, to Jack and sometimes to other supporters of Alpine. Franco and all of us who support him are fans of the whole team, Pierre [Gasly] and Jack.

“Conduct yourselves with passion but not abuse and arrogance. Franco’s time will come but not like this, you will achieve the opposite.”

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