Flavio Briatore saw something damning when he checked Jack Doohan’s data with Alpine engineers

Alpine executive advisor Flavio Briatore will have to make a decision on his driver line-up earlier than any of his counterparts in 2025. It concerns the future of Jack Doohan, who’s only just arrived.

Alpine turned to reserve driver Doohan to replace Esteban Ocon after agreeing to part ways with the Frenchman. However, Doohan only signed a six-race contract.

It’s unclear if last season’s Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, when he made an early debut in place of the Frenchman, counts as one of those races. If so, his deal will be up after the Saudi Arabian GP on 18 April.

Briatore, who oversees the big-picture decisions at Enstone, will then have to decide whether to extend his deal or make a change. He’s brought in Franco Colapinto from Williams as a possible alternative.

Some at Alpine believe Paul Aron is a better option than Colapinto, but the Argentine is clearly ahead in the queue. He took part in nine races after replacing Logan Sargeant midway through last season.

Colapinto reportedly brings £25m through his sponsorships. He’s also shown himself to be a talented, if error-prone, young driver after scoring five points for Williams.

Flavio Briatore saw Jack Doohan losing three-tenths per lap to Franco Colapinto

According to Argentine outlet La Nacion, Briatore sat down with his Alpine engineers to compare the performances of Colapinto and Doohan in Abu Dhabi. They may have been driving different cars, but it was the only sample he had.

Colapinto retired 26 laps into the race due to a power unit issue. He was also carrying damage after making contact with Oscar Piastri on the opening lap.

Doohan qualified in last place for the event before progressing to 15th, largely due to retirements. Even with Colapinto’s car in a sub-optimal condition, he outpaced the Australian by an average of three-tenths per lap when both were running the same tyre strategy.

The comparison is even more damning in light of Williams’ estimate that Colapinto was losing 0.2s every lap after the Piastri incident. What’s more, Pierre Gasly was half a second clear of Alex Albon in the sister cars, pointing to a major performance difference in Doohan’s favour.

Flavio Briatore has noticed a big similarity between Franco Colapinto and Fernando Alonso

Alpine finished the season with a car fast enough to threaten the frontrunners. Gasly qualified fifth at Yas Marina and crossed the line P7.

Doohan’s display was underwhelming, but it should be stressed that his competitors had far more experience in their respective cars. His debut also came at short notice in the final leg of a triple-header.

• READ MORE: Flavio Briatore has just done something during Franco Colapinto’s first Alpine test that will worry Jack Doohan

His performances in the early rounds will carry more weight, though one journalist fears Doohan may have to match Pierre Gasly to keep his drive. That might be an unrealistic objective.

Even though he’s involved with Doohan’s management, Briatore is a huge fan of Colapinto. He sees the same determination in the 21-year-old as he saw in Fernando Alonso during the mid-2000s, when he won both of his F1 titles.