Interview
Doohan doesn't want Piastri scenes at Alpine: 'Would not be respectful'
- GPblog.com
Jack Doohan has a clear goal for 2023: to become champion in Formula 2. The title is the ideal stepping stone to a permanent place in Formula 1 at Alpine, the French team for which the Australian is a test and reserve driver. Alpine already has Esteban Ocon and Pierre Gasly under contract for 2024, so there does not seem to be a place for Doohan next season either.
According to Formula 2 rules, it is not possible for a driver to defend the conquered title in this class. Felipe Drugovich, the 2022 champion, did not manage to find a permanent seat in Formula 1 this season. So, to still remain active in races, Aston Martin's new test and reserve driver could not join F2 again. Should Doohan become champion, the same fate as Drugovich may await him.
Best negotiating position
This does not stop Doohan from performing to the best of his ability. "Obviously I want to win the Championship like the other 21 drivers on this Formula 2 grid," Doohan told GPblog and others. "If that was to be the case than I’m pretty maxed out for that position. That is you know, the most marketable for me, and you know putting myself in a prime position. At the end of the day, there is not much more a driver can do so you know that would be trying to put myself in the best position to give myself an opportunity for the future. If that means I have to wait a year to continue my relationship with Alpine, then so be it."
Doohan continued: I look forward to that, and after then loan me out as an Alpine driver somewhere else where they can find a seat as you know how crucial it is to stay in a seat. And they are really trying heavily to avoid a situation that happened in the past and last year (when test and reserve driver Oscar Piastri decided to move to McLaren), so that they would have my best interest at heart, so it’s good to know that I can trust them for my future.”
Alpine grateful
Doohan is mainly looking at the long term, for that matter whether he becomes a Formula 2 champion or not. "If there was a good plan in place to have me obviously racing in ’25 or they restructure around it, for sure I would say that Alpine have done a lot for me and help me with this past year in 2022. And going into 2023 (they) gave me good opportunities and amazing time to really to bed myself in a Formula 1 team, so I owe a lot to them. Just to bail because they didn’t have a Formula 1 seat for me for one year, that would not be respectful and would not be what I think is correct.”
After the opening weekend in Bahrain, Doohan immediately faces a catch-up race. While his great rival Theo Pourchaire has already collected 32 points, the Australian is still at zero. Next weekend in Saudi Arabia, the Formula 2 drivers will be back in action.