‘Nobody’ in the paddock would bet on £1.5m-a-year F1 driver keeping his seat beyond 2025

The 2025 F1 season is set to be one of the most exciting seasons in the sport’s history.

The final year of the ground-effect era before the revolutionary regulations come into effect in 2026, this season will be fiercely competitive up and down the field. Many drivers and teams will be looking to dethrone Max Verstappen.

The Dutchman won his fourth consecutive title in 2024 by 63 points over Lando Norris. Verstappen won nine races despite a drop in performance from his RB20 midway through the year.

With Red Bull no longer boasting the fastest package, rivals McLaren, Ferrari and Mercedes will look to take advantage and fight for the championship. McLaren are the favourites after winning the constructors’ championship, but Norris says he has not thought about winning the title.

The 2025 season will also see six new full-time drivers on the grid for the first time since 2010. Last season marked the first time in history that no driver transfers occurred from the end of the previous year.

All six newcomers will be hoping to hit the ground running and impress their respective teams. But one driver is already under pressure and is at risk of losing his seat.

‘Nobody’ in the paddock would bet on Jack Doohan keeping his seat beyond 2025

Not long after confirming his seat for 2025, speculation has grown that Jack Doohan could be out of his seat at Alpine before the year of the end.

Doohan’s contract is reportedly only for six races, giving him until the Miami GP to prove himself. Alpine have signed Paul Aron, Ryo Hirakawa and Franco Colapinto as reserve drivers – with the last of those three being heavily tipped to replace the Aussie.

Flavio Briatore signed the Argentine from Williams on a multi-year deal. The former Benetton and Renault boss was impressed by Colapinto’s performances – he scored five points in his nine appearances last season.

READ MORE: Who is Alpine F1 driver Jack Doohan? All to know from his girlfriend to dad

The length of his contract and the £8.4m price tag Alpine paid for his services make it unlikely that Colapinto will be kept on the sidelines for too long. After making just one race start so far (the 2024 season finale in Abu Dhabi), Doohan is already at risk.

Doohan snapped back at questions about Colapinto at the F1 75 launch event, stating the 21-year-old was signed as a reserve driver. Alpne’s PR officer later stepped in to block further questions on the matter.

A report from Auto Motor und Sport reads the £1.5m-a-year driver has the difficult task of keeping the duel with teammate Pierre Gasly ‘reasonably balanced’. If he can do this, it gives the team’s management little argument to replace him.

While Doohan may have the seat now, many can see it only going one way. The report claims ‘nobody’ in the F1 paddock ‘would bet’ on the Aussie racing until the end of 2025.

What Franco Colapinto has said about replacing Jack Doohan at Alpine

Amid the pressure from Colapinto, Doohan has been preparing extensively for the 2025 season in TPC tests (Testing of Previous Cars) and Pirelli tyre tests.

Doohan outpaced George Russell in a tyre test at Barcelona. While this cannot be taken too seriously as they tested the 2026 rubber and likely on different set-ups, it will be a much-needed confidence boost for the Alpine driver.

But the F1 paddock say it’s a matter of time before Alpine sack Doohan in favour of Colapinto. Given the Aussie alleged short-term contract, the switch could happen before the summer break.

Colapinto played down the rumours but did give a telling response that he is ‘not a driver yet’. That suggests Alpine do have the Argentine in mind for the future.

Briatore promises Alpine will do all they can for Colapinto, hinting at the possibility of a full-time seat. With the Argentine almost nailed on to drive for the team at some point, Doohan must stay focused to save his short F1 career.