One of the earliest stories in Formula One this year came courtesy of Alpine, which announced the signing of 2024 Williams driver Franco Colapinto on a multi-year deal as its test and reserve driver.
We now know the deal is effectively a long-term loan, with Williams team boss James Vowles saying last week he was confident Colapinto would return in the future after his impressive displays last year.
But he felt the switch to Alpine gave Colapinto the best chance of being in a race seat either this year or next year.
If it were to be this year, the expectation is it would come at the cost of Jack Doohan’s seat. Doohan was announced in August as Pierre Gasly’s teammate for 2025, and made his last-minute debut in Abu Dhabi last year for Esteban Ocon.
I asked Doohan if he felt any pressure about the arrival of Colapinto over the winter, and what he’d been told by Alpine:
💬 “I’ve been told he’s reserve driver. You’re always going to have pressure on your shoulders, because you’re in such a cutthroat sport. Whatever pressure there may be, I look forward to enjoying that, embracing it, and just enjoying my Formula 1 season.”
Doohan was asked if he felt undermined by the presence of a 21-year-old reserve driver on a long-term contract:
💬 “I was a 21-year-old reserve driver last year, with a long-term contract. But no, I don’t. Maybe I should, I don’t know. I don’t really understand that as a question. But yeah, definitely not.”
When a third question was asked about Colapinto, Alpine’s press officer interjected to say they had “covered the Franco topic.”
