“If there is a driver who is not progressing, who is not giving me results, I change him. You can’t be emotional Formula 1“, he stated Flavio Briatoreadvisor to Alpineabout the possibility of replacing a running back in the middle of the season. With that pressure is what Jack Doohan He will have to face his first races at the command of the starting wheel of the French team. With the latent, close chance that Franco Colapinto takes his seat from the fifth date, something that could have a definition in the short term.
And, as if that were not enough, his last name has an indelible legacy in motor sports thanks to his father, Mick, who won the 500cc Motorcycle World Championship title five times in a row. However, the Australian changed two wheels for four, thanks to the blessing during his childhood of the historic Michael Schumacher. After several years linked to single-seaters, where he was never able to claim champion, the opportunity came in the Maximum as a companion Pierre Gaslywhile the argentinian lurks to remove him from his position.
Little Jack gave up his dream of being a motorcycle racer when he broke his leg, something similar to what happened to his dad, except that he was about to have it amputated after an accident in 1992. However, , Mick chose to make different decisions in his professional career and, after demonstrating impressive resilience, etched his name in the golden books of motorcycling. This was the scenario that his son was going to have to face if he decided to embark on an adventure on two wheels. But the man who directed his life towards cars is nothing more and nothing less than the greatest winner in the history of Formula 1 with Lewis Hamilton: Michael Schumacher.
The seven-time premier class champion was a close friend of the five-time champion with Honda and 500cc. Jack was even very close to Mick, son of the Ferrari driver in the Great Circuswith whom in 2024 he would have a head-to-head confrontation to get a starting seat in Alpine. But there are still many kilometers, victories, crashes and runners-up left for that moment. The native of Queensland He began his career at the age of 13 in karting. It was precisely Schumi the one who gave him his first kart, the flame that ignited his passion. He became champion in 2015 and 2016 in the local Australian championships in the KA Junior categorywhile in 2017 he took third place in an international competition throughout Europa.
With this resume he made the leap into motorsports, under the watchful eye of Helmut Marko. The Austrian made him his pupil in the Red Bull Junior Team Driver Academyan important step to fulfill his dream of reaching Formula 1. Under the important support of the energy drink company, he obtained fifth place in the British Formula 4something he could not replicate in the Italian division. For 2019 came the opportunity to go up to the Formula 3, where he stood out again at the end as runner-up of the Asian Championshipsomething that he replicated in 2020. However, he had a poor performance at the European level by finishing eleventh.
For his part, he suffered a hard blow again in his first season in Formula 3 with the team. HWA RACELAB by not scoring any points. Despite that, he once again enhanced his figure by having a second chance in F3. With the Trident Racing team, he fought head-to-head for the title against Dennis Hauger in 2021 by winning four races, but he returned to second place on the podium. Before continuing his path on the asphalt, he made a decision that was a turning point in his life: He left Red Bull to join the Alpine Driver Academy. He classified this change as “easy”, since he analyzed that if he continued with the bullfighting team his dream of reaching the championship would be stagnant. Great Circuswhile in the French team he would have more chances to show himself. In fact, the only driver I would compete with would be Oscar Piastriwho after a while left for McLaren in the middle of a controversial episode.
Although he ran a series of races in the Formula 2 con MP Motorsportshis first full season came in 2022 with the team Virtuosi Racing. With a great performance, in which he won three races and obtained six podiums, which allowed him to finish in the sixth place in the championship. However, their numbers were enough to touch the sky with their hands and be able to drive a Formula 1 monocoque. After a series of private tests in which he used models two or three years older, had his first official experience in the free practices of the Mexican Grand Prix. Doohan captivated the heads of the French team with his performance, something that allowed him to remain as a reserve driver for the first team in 2023.
For his part, he improved his performance in Formula 2. After a poor start in which he only scored six points in the first races, It rebounded towards the end of the calendar and climbed to third place, although it was far from the fight for the title. For the following year he made a decision that is not usually common and advisable, since the Australian He chose to focus solely on his duties as a reserve driver with the French team and not compete on the track.. Despite that, this was one of the main reasons for his arrival at the Maximum. The 21-year-old was key to the improvements that the mechanics made from countless hours in the simulator, while at the same time staying on the radar of the paddock with constant marketing work, a role in which he was advised by his father
In the midst of this situation, Esteban Ocon He said goodbye to the Enston-based team after several seasons and left a seat vacant. Although the first option was Carlos Sainzthe Ferrari driver chose to go to Williams. With this panorama, Alpine had two variables to fill the free gap: Jack Doohan o Mick Schumacherwho played two seasons with Haas in F1. How did you resolve the dilemma? They organized a private test on the circuit of Paul Ricard with the A522, something that was allowed by the regulations as it was a TPC session (Tests of Previous Cars). “It was strange. It doesn’t matter who is next to me. It doesn’t mean it’s going to be different outside the car, but when I get in, I have the mentality to go as fast as possible“said the Australian when competing against his friend for a dream place for both of them.
At that precise moment, an action from the past was exalted to have an impact on the present. That small gift from Michael Schumacher to a three-year-old boy that lit a spark inside Jack to fall in love with motor racing, made it impossible for his son to have a new opportunity in Formula 1. Alpine favored the Australian to be a starting driver in the first team, while the German was relegated to participating in the World Endurance Championship. At the same time, another of the reasons they had Flavio Briatiore y Oliver Oakesteam leader, to promote Doohan was to send a message to improve the figure of his own academy, since he became the first junior rider of the French team to be graduated to the official position of the entity.
However, no one was counting on Franco Colapinto’s emergence into F1. With unmatched charisma, great qualities behind the wheel, a tide of fans behind him and a multitude of sponsors on his shoulders, the Argentine stomped in the Great Circus. This caught the attention of Briatore, a 74-year-old businessman who dedicated much of his life to Formula 1 and who knows the behind-the-scenes of the paddock like few others. This situation is nothing more than an extra load of pressure on a Doohan who finished in 15th place in the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, his first race in the category that was more than correct. However, the weight of his surname moves him to generate his own legacy in the great books of sport.
