Argentine's test outing at Monza sparks further speculation over Jack Doohan's future at Alpine.

The Australian's cause wasn't helped when he crashed out in second practice on Friday after admitting making a mistake and not closing his DRS as he headed into the opening corner at 180 mph.

No sooner had the Alpine hit the barriers than social media sprung to life with claims that the Australian should be dropped in favour of Franco Colapinto.

Of course, the Australian's cause wasn't helped by the fact that he was forced to sit out opening practice as his car was handed over to Ryo Hirakawa - who just 48 hours later defected to Haas - meaning that he went into qualifying with just 28 laps under his belt.

Having qualified 19th he finished the race in 15th, having made a couple of the race's few overtakes. Furthermore, he finished just two places behind his vastly more experienced teammate, Pierre Gasly, who has hardly set the world alight this season.

After finishing the race, footage on social media revealed Doohan having to be helped from his car, and initially limping as he walked away from the Alpine, prompting speculation that he may have incurred an injury on Friday.

At which point pictures emerged of Colapinto driving an Alpine at Monza, prompting fans of the Argentine to speculate that a driver change was incoming.

In fact, the youngster was taking part in the French team's latest TPC (Testing of Previous Cars), and while he drove the car on Sunday, fellow reserve driver Paul Aron had been in action on Saturday.

The timing of the test was, we are told, purely coincidental.

Despite being unaware of the Monza test, the Sky team spent much of the weekend on Doohan's case, that's when they weren't speculating over the futures - or lack of them - of various other drivers including Liam Lawson, Yuki Tsunoda and Lewis Hamilton...

Speculation over the second Alpine seat, which Doohan insists isn't getting to him, has hardly been helped by the man forever pulling the strings somewhere or other, puppet-master Flavio Briatore.

However, the Italian insists he is not seeking to put undue pressure on anyone, just that he wants the best results for the team.

"I try to make sure the team has the best possible drivers," he said. "If it's Colapinto, Jack, Paul, I don't care.

"I'm not a killer," he insisted, "I just want to have the best drivers possible.

"I've been representing Fernando Alonso for 23 years, which shows that I support drivers who give me what I ask for."

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READERS COMMENTS

1. Posted by kenji, 10/04/2025 2:02

"@Ricardo-sanchez. Good post, you make some very important points there. We are living in a period where the demand for 'instant gratification' needs to be assuaged otherwise alternatives are available. Unfortunately 'patience' as a virtue, in the broadest sense, has ceased to be an option for the majority. There is a certain inevitability about what the future holds and that embraces existentialist thinking. To contemplate any return to 'basic racing' as some of us can recall is doomed to be categorised as wishful thinking, given the status quo. The F1 business can move sideways but not backwards. "

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2. Posted by Editor, 09/04/2025 16:30

"@ Ricardo_sanchez

Another post of the week... you're on a roll."

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3. Posted by Ricardo_sanchez, 09/04/2025 13:35

"Some very valid points already made here, and I agree this isn’t just unique to F1. The influence of social media metrics – impressions, clicks, and trending topics – seems to shape the way sports are broadcast, promoted, and even interpreted. But in F1, the shift feels particularly stark.

What once drew us in was the purity of racing: strategy, skill, machinery, and occasional elements of real human drama that were genuine rather than orchestrated. But now, the off-track narratives often feel manufactured – carefully crafted to provoke debate, speculation, and above all, ‘engagement’. Radio messages are selectively edited, intra-team rivalries hyped into ludicrous sagas, and young rookie drivers scrutinised in a way that borders on exploitative.

Liberty Media’s metrics for success include follower growth on social platforms, social media mentions, and engagement rates – not just TV ratings or race attendance. DTS has obviously been successful commercially, but it feels like could the sport is becoming a reality TV product with racing as the backdrop, rather than the main event. The upcoming F1 movie will only make that situation worse.

As others have said below, it’s increasingly a soap opera – and perhaps that’s the point. When the racing itself is as processional as we saw in Japan last weekend, perhaps attention has to be redirected elsewhere to retain interest. But is this a sustainable model or will long-term fans will drift away, disillusioned by the loss of authenticity?

F1 is becoming a spectacle built around drama, not sport. And while that might keep the clicks coming, it alienates those of us who came for the racing.
"

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4. Posted by dejan, 08/04/2025 16:53

"I don't think that this is just F1 phenomena - in the social media age this happens across all sports from football to basketball to tennis.

F1 drivers are more exposed because there are so few of them so fewer targets to the external atention and with the recent attention there aren't that many fans who have been following the sport for long so they just accept the circus as a normal state.

It might be that I'm getting old but this new media state where everything has to be sensational is not helping anyone including the media as it pulls everyone to the extremes."

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5. Posted by Editor, 08/04/2025 15:49

"@ Celtic Tiger

Fully agree and it isn't just the 'fans' on social media, the media has a lot to answer for.

Sadly it is all part of this drive to turn the sport - what there is left of it - into a soap opera, for the emotional roller-coaster suffered by young drivers whose lives have been geared towards this moment make excellent drama... for those so inclined."

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6. Posted by Celtic Tiger, 08/04/2025 15:42

"Sad to say it, but I think Doohan is cooked. That said, a whole lot of people need to calm their t*ts. In all my time following F1, never have I've seen rookies (with emphasis on the fact that these are indeed young rookie drivers) being treated like this so publicly. RedBull being the exception of course but not in a good way. "

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7. Posted by Wokingchap, 08/04/2025 14:33

"Not putting on pressure = putting on pressure. "

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Colapinto test at Monza fuels speculation

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