Alpine F1 Swaps Doohan for Colapinto – But Why Now?

Alpine F1 has officially benched Jack Doohan in favor of Franco Colapinto for the next five races, starting with Imola. While on paper it might seem like a simple driver shuffle, the timing and logic behind the move are honestly a bit confusing.

Let’s start with Doohan. His rookie campaign hasn’t exactly gone smoothly, but was it really bad enough to warrant this kind of switch just six races in? He’s shown raw pace here and there—most recently outqualifying Pierre Gasly in Miami—but he hasn't been able to string together a clean weekend. The low point probably came in Japan, when he crashed in FP1 after forgetting to close his DRS into Turn 1. That kind of mistake screams rookie jitters, not lack of talent.

But here's the thing: isn’t that what rookie seasons are for? If Alpine was truly invested in evaluating Doohan over a full year, these ups and downs should’ve been expected. Instead, they're pulling the plug early in a season where the team isn't even in serious contention for much. Gasly showed in Bahrain that the car has potential, but Alpine’s still in that messy midfield fight—not in the position to be chasing podiums week in, week out.

So why not give Doohan time to find his feet in F1? Or better yet, if they felt the need to shake things up, why not bring in a veteran to stabilize things and help prep for 2026? There are experienced guys like Daniel Ricciardo, Kevin Magnussen, or even someone like Valtteri Bottas who could provide feedback, help with car development, and still bring consistency on Sundays. Instead, Alpine goes with another young, unproven name.

Colapinto isn’t a bad driver by any means. He impressed during his brief stint with Williams last year, scoring points in Baku and Austin. But those moments were counterbalanced by big errors—like the heavy crashes in Las Vegas and Brazil. You can see the upside, but let’s not act like he dominated or made people forget about Alex Albon. And now, he's not just getting a cameo he’s been handed a five-race stretch. That feels like a lot of faith to place in someone who hasn’t exactly lit the world on fire.

It’s also unclear what Alpine’s goal is with this five-race trial. Are they evaluating Colapinto as a long-term option? Planning more driver rotations later in the year? Just trying to shake things up to boost morale and results short-term? None of it really signals a clear long-term vision

especially when the rest of the midfield is already focused on 2026 and the incoming regulation changes.

At best, this feels like a team trying something different because they can. At worst, it looks like Alpine doesn’t really know what direction it wants to go. Whatever the case, this isn’t the kind of stability or strategic clarity you want from a team trying to climb back toward the front.