Franco Colapinto is putting a number of Formula 1 drivers under pressure ahead of the 2025 season. Colapinto is on the market because Williams can’t offer him a race seat.
Williams have already extended Alex Albon’s contract and signed Carlos Sainz from Ferrari. James Vowles is therefore willing to negotiate with potential suitors over a ‘transfer fee’ for Colapinto.
One journalist claims Red Bull are planning to sign Colapinto and place him next to Max Verstappen. That would be a huge surprise considering that, as recently as the Dutch Grand Prix in late August, he wasn’t on the grid at all.
Martin Brundle has hinted Colapinto could join Red Bull, though that was before a 51G impact in Las Vegas Grand Prix qualifying. He’d be a direct replacement for Sergio Perez.
That would be a blow to Liam Lawson, who recently returned to F1 with RB. By overlooking the in-house option, Christian Horner would hint at a lack of confidence in the New Zealander.
The wildest rumour of all, though, concerns Alpine. De facto team boss Flavio Briatore is chasing Colapinto even though the team have already confirmed Pierre Gasly and Jack Doohan.
Jack Doohan unhappy about talk that Franco Colapinto could take his Alpine seat
One German outlet has claimed Doohan only has a five-race contract for 2025. If that were true, Colapinto could join as a reserve driver at first and then replace the rookie after Saudi Arabia.
According to Sky Sports F1’s Ted Kravitz, speaking on Ted’s Notebook, Doohan ‘isn’t happy’ about ‘all the rumours’ he’s hearing. He may justifiably see them as disrespectful.
Team principal Oliver Oakes, though, has offered him reassurance. He told Kravitz that the stories are unfounded, which suggests Alpine are committed to Doohan for at least the full 2025 season.
Kravitz said: “Jack Doohan – I will do you a little line on that – is somewhere around here, and isn’t happy apparently about all the rumours that Franco Colapinto’s going to come and take the second Alpine seat before Jack Doohan has even turned a wheel. I asked Oliver Oakes about this, and he said it’s completely false.”
Jenson Button’s warning to Alpine about dropping Jack Doohan for Franco Colapinto
Colapinto’s stock has fallen in the last couple of events. He crashed out of both qualifying and the race in Brazil earlier this month.
Vowles would have made allowances for those mistakes given that it was first wet race, and several more experienced drivers were caught out too. But he’s unlikely to be as understanding over his Vegas shunt.
Speaking during practice, Jenson Button said Alpine signing Colapinto ‘wouldn’t go down well’. They would surely face a backlash if they dropped Doohan before he’d had a significant run of races.
Alpine were also at the centre of a driver market controversy in 2022. They announced Oscar Piastri as Fernando Alonso’s replacement, but did so without his approval, and he ended up racing for McLaren instead.
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