The 2025 Formula 1 season hasn’t started yet but there are already several intriguing storylines that are grabbing people’s attention up and down the paddock.
Lewis Hamilton’s move to Ferrari has seen an unprecedented level of interest in private TPC runs, especially after the seven-time world champion crashed at the Circuit de Catalunya.
There are also several rookies on the grid in 2025, with Andrea Kimi Antonelli’s debut at Mercedes likely to draw the most attention.
Antonelli isn’t feeling the pressure of replacing Hamilton, but it won’t be long until Mercedes fans start expecting the Italian to challenge teammate George Russell given the hype around him.
The 2025 F1 driver’s market is also set to bubble away in the background with a few drivers out of contract at the end of the season.
Russell, Antonelli and Yuki Tsunoda are three drivers entering the last 12 months of their deals.
However, Juan Pablo Montoya, speaking on AS Colombia’s YouTube channel, believes that another driver may be set to lose his seat before the end of the upcoming campaign.
Not only that, but he thinks Formula 1 may secretly be playing a role in the team’s decision-making.
Juan Pablo Montoya thinks F1 is pushing Alpine to replace Jack Doohan with Franco Colapinto
Alpine are in an interesting position this season, having replaced Esteban Ocon with Jack Doohan ahead of last year’s season finale in Abu Dhabi.
Pierre Gasly is the established star within the team, but Alpine decided to sign several drivers over the winter to strengthen their options going forward, including Franco Colapinto from Williams.
With the news that Doohan reportedly only has a contract for the first few races of 2025, Montoya spoke about the future of the Alpine line-up and said: “The difficult thing about Doohan is that from the outside it seems like the decision has already been taken.
“I think it will happen. I think Formula 1 saw how important that is [Colapinto’s popularity] and Formula 1 in the background is already helping for that to happen.
“That is super interesting!
READ MORE: Who is Alpine F1 driver Jack Doohan? All to know from his girlfriend to dad
“We were talking before about the opportunities at Alpine, the drivers in the academy, the drivers in F2, in F3, very good drivers!
“Franco is at Williams, in the Williams academy and suddenly has a chance to race now.
“Now, none of those drivers in F2 will get the seat, it will be Franco.”
Franco Colapinto already has the support of Flavio Briatore at Alpine
Montoya was joined by the team principal of DragonSpeed Elton Julian on his podcast and he added: “Unfortunately, for me, Doohan represents the old management of the team.
“He is one of the few parts that remained and I think that they are more than anything honouring the contract.
“But he still has the opportunity. He was there in Abu Dhabi, but nobody remembers what he did.
“Franco managed to do something that was more than normal.”
READ MORE: Who is Alpine reserve driver Franco Colapinto? Everything to know
Julian talks about the old management of Alpine with Flavio Briatore arriving halfway through 2024 when Doohan was already established as the next in line to race for the team even if his seat hadn’t been confirmed.
Briatore was interested in Colapinto’s first Alpine test and will be well aware of how much money the Argentine could potentially bring in sponsorship if he’s handed a race seat.
Whether or not Formula 1 is actually playing a role in a swap between Doohan and Colapinto as Montoya suggests seems very unlikely.
However, with the return of the Argentine Grand Prix being suggested and the F1 Exhibition travelling to Buenos Aires in March, the sport is making every effort possible to capitalise on the monumental interest F1 received when Colapinto made his unexpected debut last year.
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