Jack Doohan may have found the break between China and Japan oddly relaxing. At the start of the season, his F1 future was under intense scrutiny, but Red Bull soon pulled the spotlight away from him.
Had F1 fans been asked to predict which driver would lose their seat first, most would have predicted Doohan. Instead, his former F2 rival Liam Lawson was dramatically axed after just two races.
With Yuki Tsunoda safe until the end of the season, attention may gradually shift back to Alpine’s rookie. Doohan has only signed a short-term contract, based on various reports.
And there was even talk that Doohan fears the Japanese Grand Prix will be his last race. It would arguably be wiser for Flavio Briatore to evaluate his line-up after the triple-header.
The driver applying all the pressure is Franco Colapinto. The heavily-backed Colapinto expects to take over at Alpine after joining on a long-term loan from Williams, where he broadly impressed last year.
Ted Kravitz suspects Jack Doohan wanted to complain about missing FP1 at Japanese Grand Prix
Speaking on his ‘Podbook’, Sky Sports F1’s Ted Kravitz recounted his conversation with Doohan before the Japanese Grand Prix. He quizzed the Aussie on Alpine’s decision to field Ryo Hirakawa in FP1.
That will cost their existing rookie 60 valuable minutes of track time. Doohan hasn’t raced at Suzuka since 2019, when he was competing in the F3 Asian Championship.
To his credit, the 22-year-old didn’t complain. But while he towed the party line, Kravitz suspects that he’s rather annoyed about the situation.
Hirakawa is, remarkably, one of four reserve drivers at Enstone. The others are Colapinto, Paul Aron and Kush Maini.
“Talking of restraint, Jack Doohan was quite restrained in not complaining about it, even though he admits that he’s not going to get his weekend [off to a good start] on a track where he has raced apparently in Asian F3,” Kravitz said.
“He’s a bit miffed I think, lightly speaking, that he’s not going to do an FP1, because Ryo Hirakawa, one of the 53 Alpine reserve drivers, is driving.”
Karun Chandhok baffled by Ryo Hirakawa decision – there was an obvious alternative
Doohan has shown some glimpses of promise so far, most notably in Sprint qualifying last time out when he outqualified Pierre Gasly. But he finished that race last after a 10-second penalty for a collision with Gabriel Bortoleto.
Either side, he crashed out of his home race in Melbourne and crossed the line 16th in the Chinese GP (though that later became 13th due to disqualifications). He needs to put together a cleaner weekend but is automatically at a disadvantage.
Bizarrely, Alpine could hand Hirakawa to Haas after Friday’s session. It may be that there was a commercial incentive to field the Japanese driver in front of his own fans.
Even still, Karun Chandhok has questioned why Alpine didn’t sideline Gasly. Doohan could then have made way later in the year on a track where he felt more comfortable.
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