‘Overwhelmed’ F1 driver ‘already knows’ he’s getting sacked after just three races

One Formula 1 driver is on the verge of being sacked just three races into the season and has been told he may have already raced his last grand prix.

Its been a cracking start to the new F1 season with Lando Norris and Max Verstappen separated by just one point after the latter’s win in Japan on Sunday.

It’s a quick turnaround as the sport heads to Bahrain this weekend but one driver may not be racing there following a tough start to the year.

After coming through the Alpine academy, Jack Doohan was handed a race seat by the French team for 2025 and made his debut at last year’s season finale in Abu Dhabi.

However, even before his career began he was under immense pressure as Alpine signed Franco Colapinto over the winter break to become their test driver, and it is no secret that the team want the highly-rated Argentine to race for them.

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To make matters worse for Doohan, he crashed out on the opening lap in Australia and finished 13th and 15th in China and Japan, with Alpine the only team yet to score points this season.

Last weekend in Suzuka was a nightmare for the 22-year-old, who was replaced in first practice by rookie Ryo Hirakawa before crashing into the barriers at 185mph in second practice.

The crash was caused by Doohan not closing his DRS in time, a ‘fatal mistake’ that may well have ended his career according to Ralf Schumacher.

‘He makes a lot of mistakes and isn’t fast enough,’ the six-time grand prix winner and brother of Michael Schumacher told Sky Sports Germany.

‘Ryo Hirakawa, who got into the car in the first practice session, was right on par with [Alpine teammate] Pierre Gasly. He [Doohan] got in and made this fatal mistake.

‘This will be analysed from a team perspective. At the moment, he’s overwhelmed by the situation.

‘We’ll sit down with him, and I’m curious to see what happens. He’s not guaranteed to be in the next race.’

Reports suggest sacking Doohan just three races into the season is being considered, fuelled by news that Colapinto was testing an older Alpine car over the weekend, perhaps preparing for his return to the grid.

Speaking on Sky Sports, 1997 world champion Jacques Villeneuve claimed that Doohan already knows he’ll be getting the boot: ‘His driving has been one of desperation, having to prove that he’s at least better than Gasly so they should keep him.

‘He’s already been told that, “Look, you do a few races, but then you’ll probably be replaced”, and you can see it in his driving. It’s not comfortable. It’s really not comfortable.

‘And when the driver is in that situation, even psychologically, the driving will not be natural and small mistakes will start happening.

‘The problem is he’s known before the first race that he probably would not finish this season. He’s been put under tremendous pressure by Flavio [Briatore, Alpine advisor] mainly, with Colapinto there in the wing, and the writing was on the wall.’

If he is axed, Doohan would become the second causality of the F1 season after Liam Lawson was demoted from Red Bull to Racing Bulls and replaced by Yuki Tsunoda.

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