Alpine has confirmed Jack Doohan will not race for the team at the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix.
The team’s reserve driver Franco Colapinto will replace him for the event at Imola.
Alpine said in a statement Colapinto will take Doohan’s place for the next five rounds at Imola, Monaco, Catalunya, Montreal and Red Bull Ring. The team then intends to re-evaluate its driver line-up before the British Grand Prix at Silverstone.
The team’s plans were revealed last week when one of Colapinto’s sponsors said he expected the driver to make his debut at Imola. Although the report was denied by Alpine’s team principal Oliver Oakes on Friday, Oakes resigned his position at the team yesterday.
Alpine’s executive consultant Flavio Briatore has taken over Oakes’s role. He said the team had taken the decision to rotate its drivers because of the team’s improved performance since last year.
“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.”
Doohan has started seven grands prix for the team, the first coming at last year’s season finale at Yas Marina. However even before then rumours emerged that some in the team were keen to hire Colapinto, who made an impressive debut for Williams over the final nine rounds of last season.
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The speculation grew after Alpine hired Colapinto as a reserve driver in January, one of four contracted to the team at the time, and subsequently signed deals with his sponsors.
Doohan’s future at the team looked shakier after they benched him during the first practice session for the Japanese Grand Prix at Suzuka. They ran Ryo Hirakawa instead, a substitution which did not count towards the team’s quota of rookie driver runs, as they had already fulfilled that obligation on Doohan’s car.
Alpine said Doohan remains part of their team. “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,” said Briatore. “The next five races will give us an opportunity to try something different and after this time period we will assess our options.”
Doohan, who made his F1 debut at the final round of last season, said he was proud to have achieved his ambition to become an F1 driver. “Obviously this latest chapter is a tough one for me to take because, as a professional driver, naturally I want to be racing,” he said. “That said, I appreciate the team’s trust and commitment.”
Colapinto said joining the team in time for the run of three consecutive rounds beginning next week will be “intense and a big challenge for everyone.”
“I have stayed sharp, and I am as ready as possible with the team’s race support testing programme, as well as on the simulator at Enstone. I will do my best to get up to speed quickly and give it my all to deliver the best possible results alongside Pierre.”
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