Esteban Ocon will not finish the season at Alpine as he will be replaced by Jack Doohan ahead of the final round of the season in Abu Dhabi.
The Frenchman will instead compete in the post-season test at the Yas Marina Circuit after the Grand Prix weekend to begin life with the Haas team.
Ocon has struggled in recent races and has only scored points once since the summer break at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix on a chaotic day as he finished second.
The Alpine driver has been beaten by his teammate Pierre Gasly this season, who is leading the team’s charge to sixth in the Constructors’ Championship after the Qatar Grand Prix.
Doohan will partner with Gasly in Abu Dhabi during his Formula 1 debut weekend. The Australian is looking to get up to speed ahead of a full season with the team next year.
It was announced after the Qatar Grand Prix that Ocon would vacate his spot ahead of the final round of the season, but Alpine may have wanted to put Doohan in the car earlier.
Alpine wanted to drop Esteban Ocon earlier to test Jack Doohan before Qatar
Doohan was announced as a Formula 1 driver in September earlier this year after being part of the Alpine Academy since 2022 and reserve driver this season.
Stepping into Formula 1 as a a rookie in incredibly difficult as there are a lot of new tracks particularly outside of Europe than aren’t on many junior series calendars.
This can make life difficult at some events as there is the added scrutiny of the media as Formula 1 has much more attention than any other championship.
Many rookies are moving up to F1 for next season alongside Doohan, such as Andrea Kimi Antonelli, who is replacing Lewis Hamilton at Mercedes.
READ MORE: How Mercedes boss Toto Wolff played a role in Esteban Ocon’s Alpine exit before Abu Dhabi Grand Prix
The Race reported that Alpine were thinking about allowing Doohan to race in a few more races this season to assess where he stands in the team alongside Gasly.
They also had the option of dropping him for Franco Colapinto if the Argentine was the better option if Doohan underperforms next year.
Colapinto has been racing with Williams since the Italian Grand Prix and put in some good performances although crashes in Brazil and Las Vegas have hurt his chances of being on the grid for 2025.
Alpine are also no longer interested in Colapinto after a series of crashes for the Williams driver but that might change if Doohan underperforms.
Jack Doohan needs to hit the ground running in Formula 1
Doohan has been given a chance to get a headstart ahead of his first full season in Formula 1 next year by experiencing a race weekend.
The Australian will be under pressure at the Yas Marina Circuit as Alpine are looking to cling onto sixth place in the Constructors’ Championship ahead of Haas and RB.
Alpine’s new driver will need to be on the pace over the weekend, particularly in the Grand Prix, as even one point could be vital with not a lot of margin for error in Abu Dhabi.
Doohan will need to start well in 2025 with Colapinto on the sidelines and the Argentine has been impressive at some races this season although he has suffered some errors.
