Pounded or deserving... What is Jack Doohan really worth?

In this year of great change, not a week goes by without lovers ofAlpine do not wonder in what sauce they will be eaten. The loss ofEsteban Ocon was painful, although undoubtedly necessary given the internal atmosphere with Pierre Gasly, but the departure of the only Grand Prix winner in the history ofAlpine Despite everything, it has an unsavory symbolism.

To replace him, there have long been several candidates, not necessarily all exciting. The mountaineers no doubt held their breath when the slopes Guanyu-Zhou ou Mick Schumacher were mentioned, they also had high hopes when Flavio Briatore pushed at the last minute to attempt the card Carlos Sainz in vain. It will ultimately be Jack Doohan, as officially announced this Friday from Zandvoort.

On paper it could have been much better with the Spaniard, but it could have been much worse too! The Australian, a reservist for two years at enstone, therefore ended up having his chance, but will have to extricate himself from this image of protégé of Flavio Briatore which already sticks to him, since he has entrusted his career to the omnipotent special advisor of Luca De Meo. Good luck to him, therefore, since it remains difficult to know whether or not he would have obtained his tenure without the intervention of the former boss of Renault at the time of the world champion titles (2005 and 2006).

Jack Doohan, solid course among young people

Fans ofAlpine those unfamiliar with the world of promotional formulas could be pleasantly surprised by the Australian's future performances. His CV among young people is far from ridiculous, and even more than his prize lines without any title, his burst of speed and his adaptability have often been impressive. Originally from Gold Coast in Queensland, the son of five-time 500cc motorcycle world champion Mick Doohan arrived in Europe in 3, then spent six seasons in promotional formulas (2017-2018), with some disappointments but also some nice hits of splinters on arrival.

His encouraging debut in British F4 (5th in 2018) was followed by convincing results, while he was a member of the Red Bull Junior Team. Twice runner-up in F3 Asia the following two winters, Jack appeared on the teams' radar F1 in 2021, where he finished vice-champion of Formula 3 FIA with Trident (4 victories and 2 poles). Performances which earned him a place in theAlpine Academy. The Aussie came a long way, and in particular from a year 2020 which could have considerably darkened his future, with… 0 points on the clock for his rookie year in F3.

Jack Doohan shone in F2 the last two years. © Xavi Bonilla / DPPI

“It’s a season that could have killed my career, Doohan told us in 2023. I do not want to be exhaustive in the explanations so as not to disrespect the team in question (HWA Racelab. Editor's note). Let's say that the connection with them was not exceptional. I struggled in the wide widths and I didn't feel all the support I needed. But I don't want to criticize, it could have worked for others. I just wasn't able to show my potential in this context, unfortunately. I doubted, the year was very complicated. My father put time, money and a lot of energy on the table to ensure that opportunities were created for me. It was painful to tell myself that I hadn't been able to score a point in the F1 curtain-raiser. »

Alpine, not safe from a pleasant surprise?

At the end of 2021, he offered himself a preparatory stint in F2 and amazed observers by offering himself a first row entry, only 2/10th of the champion Oscar piastri, and in front of pilots like Ticktum, Pourchaire or Shwartzman and Lawson. The Aussie will confirm his absolute ease on the qualifying rounds by signing three poles the following season for his first year in Formula 2, only one less than champion Felipe Drugovich. “If we look at the statistics from the first part of the 2022 season, I was really fast in qualifying, but I couldn't put everything together in the race, he explains again. The turning point came when we found the right setting for me mid-season. And the results followed (3 victories, 6th in the championship). »

The 2023 season was to be that of achieving the championship title before a possible move up to F1. And then, chronic brake problems which required several meetings to identify and correct cost him a lot of points during the first five meetings. When the machine started in Barcelona, ​​however, Jack never left the top 10, in both the sprint race and the main event, scoring three victories in total. His delay at the start of the season still cost him to really be in the fight for the title (he finished only 35 points behind Théo Pourchaire), but he showed that he had the level.

Hello, Flavio? THANKS ! © DPPI

If other drivers like Théo Pourchaire, Robert Shwartzman or Felipe Drugovich would undoubtedly have deserved to have their chance before him in the premier discipline, the tenure of Jack Doohan is not usurped. Two questions remain, however, around Jack's true level: since his second year of Formula 3, he has always played in very successful teams, undoubtedly flattering his driving skills.

There was Trident which surprised everyone in 2021, and UNI-Virtuosi in Formula 2, which had already made profiles like Guanyu Zhou and Callum Ilott shine. Finally the other question concerns the overall level of his teammates in the mentioned teams: Clément Novalak, Marino Sato, Amaury Cordeel to name but a few. Only the Frenchman had been able to stand up to him overall in F3, but none of these names mentioned was F1 material. Facing Pierre Gasly, Jack will have a lot to do, particularly in racing, a sector in which he has good room for improvement. But there would be nothing very surprising in seeing him quickly rise to the level of the Normand in the flying lap exercise...

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