Jack Doohan Signals End of Alpine Era as Haas Rumors Swirl
It looks like the road has finally run out for Jack Doohan at Alpine. In a move that feels like the closing of a complicated chapter, the Australian driver took to social media to share what appears to be a final goodbye to the French outfit. There were no long paragraphs or press release-style statements, just a series of photos. The images showed Doohan embracing the mechanics, the engineers, and the team members who stood by him during a rollercoaster stint in Formula 1.
Sometimes, pictures really do say more than words. The lack of a caption on his Instagram post made the message even louder. It feels like a mix of gratitude for the opportunity and the somber realization that it’s time to move on. For a racer, packing up your locker is never easy, especially when you’ve tasted the action on the grid.
A Rollercoaster Year for Doohan
To understand the weight of this goodbye, you have to look at the last twelve months. Doohan didn’t just hang around the paddock. He was in the fight. He made his debut at the 2024 finale in Abu Dhabi and started the 2025 season as a full-time driver for Alpine. That’s the dream every kid in a kart chases. But F1 is a brutal business, and it doesn’t often give second chances.
After the first six races of the 2025 season, the scoreboard was empty. No points. In this sport, results are the only currency that matters. Alpine made the tough call to pull him from the seat ahead of the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, swapping him out for Franco Colapinto. That’s a gut punch for any competitor.
Doohan had to swallow his pride and revert to his reserve-driver role, spending the rest of the year watching someone else drive his car while he logged hours on the simulator. That takes a particular kind of character. It would be easy to throw a fit or walk away, but Doohan stuck it out. He showed up to the races, put on the headset, and did the work. That level of professionalism is why his career isn’t over yet.
The Haas Connection: A New Lifeline for Doohan?
While one door closes at Alpine, another very interesting garage door opens elsewhere. Word in the paddock is that Doohan is the top pick to become the new reserve driver for Haas for the 2026 season. This isn’t just a standard reserve role, though.
The pieces of the puzzle fit together because of a major player returning to the sport: Toyota. The Japanese automotive giant has come back to F1 as a technical partner for Haas, and the team is set to rebrand as TGR (Toyota Gazoo Racing) Haas F1 Team next season. Why does this matter for Doohan?
Because he is looking at a seat in the Japan-based Super Formula series next year, likely with Toyota’s backing. It makes perfect sense. Toyota supports him in Japan, and he supports their partner team, Haas, in the F1 paddock. It’s a clever yet strategic play that keeps his foot in the door of the pinnacle of motorsport while getting him competitive seat time elsewhere.
The Challenge of Super Formula
If the plan goes ahead, Doohan won’t just be holding a clipboard at Haas. He is expected to combine his F1 reserve duties with a full Super Formula campaign. For those who don’t follow Japanese racing, Super Formula is no walk in the park. The cars are incredibly fast, closest in performance to F1 machinery, and the tracks are unforgiving.
Doohan got a taste of just how unforgiving it can be earlier this month. He participated in the post-season test at Suzuka, one of the most revered and dangerous circuits in the world. It was a rough outing. He found the barriers three times at the Degner corners.
Critics might jump on that, but anyone who knows racing knows that testing is about finding the limit. It sounds like he was experimenting with setups and got bitten by the track. Later data analysis showed he failed to close his DRS entering the high-speed Turn 1, which contributed to the trouble. It’s a learning curve, and it proves he’s still pushing hard to find raw speed.
What Lies Ahead for Doohan
The expectation is that Doohan will support Haas’ race drivers, Oliver Bearman and Esteban Ocon, next year. It’s a solid lineup, and having a reserve driver with recent F1 race experience is a massive asset for a team like Haas.
Leaving Alpine is undoubtedly emotional. You build bonds with the guys changing your tires and the engineers analyzing your data. But in racing, you can’t drive forward while looking in the rearview mirror. Jack Doohan took his hits in 2025, but he’s dusting himself off and lining up his next move.
If he can master the Super Formula cars in Japan and embed himself in the new Toyota-Haas era, this isn’t the last we’ll see of him. He’s closing the book on Alpine, but the story of Jack Doohan is far from finished.
