Australian Jack Doohan may make F1 debut this week after star crashes and quits
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The 21-year-old from the Gold Coast, Queensland, is expected to race at the 2024 F1 season finale in Abu Dhabi this weekend after Alpine driver Ocon reportedly quit.
Australian Jack Doohan looks set to make his Formula One debut at the 2024 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix on 6-8 December to make it two Australians on the grid for the first time since Daniel Ricciardo's dumping.
The news comes after French driver Esteban Ocon reportedly quit the Alpine team with one race of the 2024 season remaining after crashing out on the opening lap of the Qatar Grand Prix.
Doohan – son of five-time 500cc world champion motorcycle racer Mick – had already signed to race for Alpine in the 2025 Formula One (F1) world championship for Alpine, his first race to be the Australian F1 Grand Prix at Albert Park on 14-16 March 2025.
Yet the Alpine team, where Doohan has been the reserve driver this year, is now negotiating to replace the departing Ocon with the Australian one race early at next week's Abu Dhabi season finale.
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Alpine confirmed the discussions after the Qatar Grand Prix, where Australia's Oscar Piastri came third in his McLaren to stand on the podium for the ninth time this year.
By releasing Ocon early, the French driver is able to participate in the end-of-season test in December with his new team, Hass – which gained backing from Toyota in 2024 – something Alpine had the power to block if it so wished.
Instead, while enabling Ocon to test, the move will benefit Doohan with invaluable real-world experience in a Formula One (F1) car ahead of the Queenslander's first full season in 2025.
"It’s good to get Jack in early. I think you could say from Esteban’s side it’s good to move on early. I think it suits everybody. So I think the discussion is quite natural really," Alpine Team Principal, Oliver Oakes, said in a press conference at Qatar when asked about the move.
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"Honestly, Esteban's been a big part of this team as well and, from both sides, it suits each other."
The decision was influenced by the team wanting to keep a solid relationship with Mercedes-Benz, given Ocon is managed by the German car maker and Alpine will switch from its current Renault engines to Mercedes-Benz units in 2026.
A similar agreement has been made with Ferrari allowing Carlos Sainz to drive for his new 2025 team, Williams, in the December test – whereas Mercedes-Benz has not allowed Sainz's replacement at Ferrari, Lewis Hamilton, to drive for the Italian team at the event.
Doohan made the gutsy decision to sit out the 2024 Formula 2 season – one step below F1 – to pursue a full-time F1 seat with no guarantees the gamble would pay off.
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"It's a big risk, otherwise I wouldn't be here – I'd go home, sit on the couch and watch the tele," Doohan told Drive at the 2024 Australian F1 Grand Prix last March.
"The plan is to be in a race seat, and so that's what I am doing right now, that's why I am staying fit in a Formula One car – every morning, I'm working on that … I think we made the right decision."
The post Australian Jack Doohan may make F1 debut this week after star crashes and quits appeared first on Drive.
