Alpine appears to have swiftly addressed rumours that Jack Doohan may be ousted from his 2025 Formula 1 seat before the season even begins.
With backing from Bernie Ecclestone, who recently told Blick that the $20 million release fee for Franco Colapinto would be "no problem" for Alpine advisor Flavio Briatore, speculation mounted that the Enstone-based team might consider bringing in Colapinto instead.
According to these rumours, Doohan's spot could be in jeopardy. But Alpine seemingly quashed the speculation with a new social media post featuring a video of Doohan training, captioned "2025 in progress."
Currently, Pierre Gasly is also confirmed for 2025, but the Japanese outlet as-web.jp reports friction between the Frenchman and Briatore, who serves as Renault CEO Luca de Meo's key F1 advisor with decision-making power. The report suggests that Briatore, reportedly frustrated with Gasly's habitual tardiness, reprimanded him in front of the team during the Mexican GP weekend.
Additionally, Briatore may have imposed a consequence by instructing the 28-year-old Gasly to participate in a test of Alpine's two-year-old car in Qatar right after the Brazilian GP.