Jenson Button believes that teams should not be able to “change [their] driver during a season” after Alpine replaced Jack Doohan with Franco Colapinto ahead of the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix.
During the Sky Sports F1 broadcast in Monaco, Button discussed the recent driver movements at the Enstone outfit with former F1 driver-turned-analyst Karun Chandhok and lead commentator David Croft.
The French team opted to replace Doohan after just six races of his rookie season. Announced ahead of the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, the Australian moved back into the reserve driver role as Colapinto, who signed with Alpine as reserve and test driver at the start of the year, moved up to the seat alongside Pierre Gasly.
Chandhok argued during the broadcast that it was “harsh” on Doohan. He explained:
“It’s interesting what Ted [Kravitz] was saying there about Colapinto, isn’t it, because on an initial reflection of Imola, it wasn’t like there was a step up from what Jack Doohan was doing.
“I mean, in some ways it’s really harsh on Jack, isn’t it, because he had flashes of speed. I know he had some shunts, but he was a bit unlucky sometimes with timing and yellow flags and stuff. And there were occasions where he matched Pierre Gasly for pace. And so it did, taking commercial considerations aside, it feels harsh on Jack Doohan.”
Croft added, “I don’t see anything other than commercial considerations in that driver decision.”
Jack Doohan, Alpine
Photo by: Kym Illman / Getty Images
Agreeing, Button claimed that if a driver has a contract, they should be able to compete in the whole season.
“I totally agree. I mean, Colapinto was extremely quick when he jumped in the Williams last year and immediately pulled out some strong results,” explained the 2009 F1 champion.
“So I understand if you’ve got him as a test driver that he’s there and he’s willing and ready to jump in. But yeah, it’s very harsh after a few races. I mean, there should be a ruling that you cannot change your driver during a season. It’s like you’ve got a contract, it’s got to run a season.”
Croft concluded, “Unless they’re injured and can’t race or whatever. Just to add to this, average starting position for Jack Doohan this season, 15.5. Average starting position in nine starts for Williams for Colapinto, 16th.”
In the announcement from Alpine, the French team explained that Colapinto would be in the seat “for the next five races.” However, Flavio Briatore, who has assumed the responsibilities of team principal after the shock exit of Oliver Oakes, has since claimed that there is “no set limit” for the Argentinian driver.
