Jack Doohan has left Alpine by mutual consent, it has been confirmed. The news comes as no surprise, given the Australian driver had not been given a chance to impress on the Formula 1 track again after his short, pointless stint in a race seat. He drove just seven times for the team before he was replaced by Franco Colapinto, who also failed to score a point in 2025 but has been retained regardless.

Colapinto will continues to race alongside experienced driver Pierre Gasly, who has signed a long-term contract, in the early rounds of the 2026 season. And Estonian former Formula 2 driver Paul Aron will serve as reserve driver, leaving Doohan surplus to requirements in the current Alpine set-up.

Doohan hinted at the end of December that he was set to depart, with a cryptic social media post which saw him embracing colleagues at the Alpine factory. The team finally confirmed the split with a statement issued on Tuesday morning which read: "BWT Alpine Formula 1 Team confirms it has reached a mutual agreement with Jack Doohan to not continue his driving services with the team for the 2026 FIA Formula 1 World Championship season and allow him to pursue other career opportunities.

"Jack became the first member of the Alpine Academy to graduate into a race seat with the team when he made his Grand Prix debut at the 2024 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. The team would like to thank Jack for his commitment and professionalism to the team for the past four years, both on and off track, and wishes him all the best for the future."

Doohan was dropped from his race seat after the Miami Grand Prix in May, but retained as a reserve driver and initially told that another chance could come his way. Colapinto was initially given a five-race audition for the seat but retained the place for the rest of the year despite failing to score a single point, as Alpine endured a wretched campaign having decided to focus all their development resources on their 2026 car.

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When it became clear to Doohan that he was not going to get another go, his attention turned elsewhere as he mulled over his options for 2026. It is expected that the Australian driver will appear in the Japanese Super Formula racing series in 2026, despite a difficult test audition at Suzuka in which he crashed at the same corner on all three days.

But that is not to say that his F1 career is over. Doohan is said to have held talks with several teams over potential testing opportunities over the next 12 months, with a view to possibly landing a race seat for the 2027 season. The Super Formula schedule is not particularly demanding and could easily be paired with an F1 testing schedule.

The Kondo team he is likely to race in Super Formula with uses Toyota engines, and the Japanese carmaker has strong ties with the Haas F1 team as its title sponsor and technical partner. As a result, it has been speculated that there could be a role at Haas to be found for Doohan in the coming months.