Colapinto replaces Jack Doohan at Alpine. [Credits: Formula 1]

F1 Breaking News – Franco Colapinto to Replace Jack Doohan for Five Races at Alpine!

Alpine Formula 1 announce the much awaited news regarding their mid-season driver swap.

Colapinto replaces Jack Doohan at Alpine. [Credits: Formula 1]

The big news for Franco Colapinto is finally out. Formula 1 fans spent the past week in doubt and speculation regarding Alpine’s situation. They do not have a good reputation when it comes to stability. Alpine already lost their new team principal Oliver Oakes. He was replaced by Flavio Briatore. Now, its time for Jack Doohan to see the exit gate. Doohan was under risk since one entire month. Ralf Schumacher had already predicted his replacement since Bahrain. However, Alpine was trying to negate the rumors by claiming that they would not replace Doohan in the current season.

BREAKING: Franco Colapinto to race at least the next five races for Alpine in place of Jack Doohan#F1 pic.twitter.com/HLarDPmYP8
— Formula 1 (@F1) May 7, 2025

Everything came to a pause today, Alpine have released a new statement. In this statement, it is clear that Doohan will not continue as their driver in the upcoming races in Formula 1. He is going to give way to the one hit wonder from Williams last year. Franco Colapinto is back to Formula 1. This time, he will be racing for Alpine instead of Williams.

Let’s go through the clauses of his contract and more major news from Alpine after this announcement.

Franco Colapinto will Race for At Least Five Grand Prix Instead of Doohan

Last year, Franco Colapinto was driving for Williams in order to replace Logan Sargeant for the latter half of the season. He was confident about getting a seat in Formula 1. However, his ambitions were not able to come true in 2025. Colapinto’s performance and Briatore’s liking towards the Argentinian driver has helped him gain his new seat in Formula 1.

Franco Colapinto was in rumors for the previous days. It was speculated that he will join Alpine from Imola. Alpine F1 had also supposedly informed Doohan of this swap. They have finally revealed the complete details of the swap to Formula 1 fans today.

In this new swap, Franco Colapinto will race for five races (at least) as Alpine claims. He will sub out Doohan whose fate is not yet clear in Alpine. This news comes after a series of disappointing performances from Doohan. Alpine has made it clear that Doohan will return to his former duties as a reserve driver for the span of these five races.

TEAM STATEMENT pic.twitter.com/fb2CFlwcWP
— BWT Alpine Formula One Team (@AlpineF1Team) May 6, 2025

Franco Colapinto is with Alpine since January 2025 as their reserve driver. This is what he had to say about his promotion-

“Firstly, I want to thank the team for giving me the opportunity to drive competitively for the next five races. I will work hard with the team to prepare for the next race in Imola and the upcoming triple-header, which will no doubt be intense and a big challenge for everyone.”

For Doohan, it is a gutting moment. He was able to secure his seat after showing good pace in the pre-season tests and his one-off performance at Abu Dhabi 2024. Doohan is thankful to Alpine and determined to not let his future go in the dark-

“I am very proud to have achieved my lifelong ambition to be a professional Formula 1 driver and I will forever be grateful to the team for helping me achieve this dream. Obviously, this latest chapter is a tough one for me to take because, as a professional driver, naturally I want to be racing.”

This announcement, makes Doohan the second driver to lose his seat in the 2025 season. However, compared to Liam Lawson, Doohan has it much harder as he will be sitting out and watching another driver take his place.

Alpine F1

Emilia Romagna Grand Prix

Formula 1

Formula 1 2025 Season

Franco Colapinto

Imola GP

Jack Doohan

Rohan Singh

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I work as a Writer at The Playoffs specialising in NHL, Formula 1 and Motorsports. I got into online journalism a couple of years ago. I used to be an intern for a website managing their Formula 1 content and then I served an entire year as a contractual writer.