Alpine releases Doohan ahead of 2026 F1 season

Alpine has drawn a firm line under Jack Doohan’s Formula 1 chapter, confirming that the Australian driver will not be part of its plans for the 2026 season.

What once looked like a carefully plotted academy success story has instead ended quietly, underscoring how unforgiving the path from promise to permanence can be at the top level of motorsport.

Doohan’s rise had been one Alpine could point to with pride. Nurtured through the team’s academy since his Formula 2 days, he finally got his long-awaited chance when he made his Grand Prix debut at the 2024 Abu Dhabi finale.

That early promotion was meant to give him momentum heading into his first full campaign the following year. Instead, 2025 became a relentless audition he struggled to pass.

A Promising Path Turns Into a Ruthless Trial

By the time Doohan lined up for his maiden season, Alpine’s faith was already being tested. The team bolstered its reserve ranks, most notably with Franco Colapinto, and the pressure intensified immediately.

Against Pierre Gasly, Doohan was consistently on the back foot – managing to outqualify his more experienced teammate just once in six races and often trailing the Frenchman by a significant margin.

On Sundays, a best finish of 13th in China offered little respite.

Those numbers proved decisive. Alpine moved swiftly, promoting Colapinto into a race seat and pushing Doohan back into a reserve role.

The demotion was one the 22-year-old openly acknowledged was “a tough one for [him] to take”, and it effectively signalled the beginning of the end of his Formula 1 ambitions with the Enstone-based outfit.

Alpine Confirms the End of the Road

Now, Alpine has made the split official, confirming that Doohan will leave the team altogether ahead of the new regulations era. In a statement, the team said:

“BWT Alpine Formula One Team confirms it has reached a mutual agreement with Jack Doohan to not continue his driving services with the team for the 2026 FIA Formula One World Championship season and allow him to pursue other career opportunities.

“Jack became the first member of the Alpine Academy to graduate into a race seat with the team when he made his grand prix debut at the 2024 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

“The team would like to thank Jack for his commitment and professionalism to the team for the past four years, both on and off track, and wishes him all the best for the future.”

Read also:

• No regrets: Briatore defends brutal call to drop Doohan

For Doohan, the future now appears to lie away from Formula 1. A potential move to Japan’s Super Formula with Kondo Racing has been discussed, though nothing has yet been finalised after a bruising Suzuka test that saw him crash three times at the same Degner 2 corner.

It is a disappointing end to a journey that once symbolised Alpine’s long-term vision.

Instead, Doohan becomes another reminder of how quickly Formula 1 can turn on its own – where academy dreams, even those years in the making, can dissolve in the space of a single season.

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