Jack Doohan breaks silence as Alpine star suffers brutal sacking after just six races

has reiterated his 'trust and commitment' to the project, despite being dropped from his race seat ahead of the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix. The Australian rookie was afforded just six races in 2025, with Flavio Briatore opting to bring into the team for the upcoming race in Imola. Doohan's debut campaign in F1 was a challenging one from the outset. He crashed on the opening lap in treacherous conditions in Australia and suffered a high-speed impact in FP1 at the Japanese Grand Prix.

Then, in the most recent race in Miami, he collided with Liam Lawson at Turn One, sparking a premature retirement. That race may turn out to be his last in F1, as Alpine confirmed on Wednesday that the Australian has been dropped in favour of Franco Colapinto. The 20-year-old steps up to partner Pierre Gasly for the next five races, although Doohan will remain in the team and will be the 'first-choice reserve driver' for this period.

Speaking out for the first time after the announcement, Doohan said: "I am very proud to have achieved my lifelong ambition to be a professional Formula One 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.

"That said, I appreciate the team's trust and commitment. We have long-term goals as a team to achieve, and I will continue to give my maximum efforts in any way I can to help achieve those. For now, I will keep my head down, keep working hard, watch with interest the next five races and keep chasing my own personal goals."

While Doohan has been sidelined for now, the Gold Coast-born racer will not give up on his F1 future, and with Colapinto tied down to only a five-race deal, it is possible that we'll see the Australian make another Grand Prix start before the end of the 2025 campaign.

Explaining the controversial decision, executive advisor Briatore said: "Having reviewed the opening races of the season, we have come to the decision to put Franco in the car alongside Pierre for the next five races.

"With the field being so closely matched this year, and with a competitive car, which the team has drastically improved in the past 12 months, we are in a position where we see the need to rotate our line-up. We also know the 2026 season will be an important one for the team, and having a complete and fair assessment of the drivers this season is the right thing to do in order to maximise our ambitions next year.

"We continue to support Jack at the team, as he has acted in a very professional manner in his role as a race driver so far this season. The next five races will give us an opportunity to try something different and after this time period we will assess our options."