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Which drivers have been rumoured as an option for an Alpine F1 seat next season?
With Esteban Ocon departing the team, will Pierre Gasly retain his seat with Alpine or move elsewhere for 2025? (Image Credit: @AlpineF1Team on X)On Monday 3rd June, Esteban Ocon and Alpine announced that the 27-year-old will depart the team at the end of the year. Ocon and his teammate, Pierre Gasly do not have F1 contracts past the end of this season.
A few drivers have been included in speculations regarding the available Formula 1 seat. It may be two seats, depending on whether Gasly signs a contract extension with the Enstone-based team. So, who could be in the running to drive for Alpine in 2025?
Jack Doohan
Jack Doohan is rumoured to be the leading contender for the Alpine seat in 2025. The 21-year-old currently serves as Alpine’s reserve driver. Previously, the Australian driver competed in Formula 2 in 2023, finishing third. He is also a former member of the Red Bull Junior Team.
The young driver has not been shy about his ambitions. As reported by F1, following post-2023 season testing with Alpine, he said:
“My eyes are on a race seat now.”
He continued:
“I want to be on the grid in 2025. So, I’ll stay with [Alpine], keep working and making sure that when I’m in the car I’m performing – whenever that is, FP1s or testing – to give myself the best shot to get comfy in this [paddock] for a full season.”
Doohan comes from a racing pedigree. His father is the five-time consecutive bike racing 500cc champion, Mick Doohan. Doohan’s father shared his opinion on the Beyond the Grid podcast, recognising the challenge of achieving a seat in F1:
“You’ve only got 20 seats, and at any given point in time there may be one or two seats available. Then, with how fluid the paddock moves and the commercial aspect of it, you’ve got to be in the right spot at the right time with the right deal in place.”
Mick Schumacher
After losing his Haas F1 seat at the end of the 2022 season, Mick Schumacher took on the reserve driver role for Mercedes and McLaren. For 2024, the 25-year-old signed with Alpine to drive for their hypercar team in the World Endurance Championship.
Undoubtedly, the German driver is popular amongst F1 fans. His father, Michael Schumacher left a legendary legacy in the sport. Due to the young ex-Haas driver’s existing links to Alpine, many have suggested that their 2025 seat could be a realistic option.
However, the WEC driver was let go from Haas partly due to the money he cost the team after multiple crashes during his time in F1. As reported by PlanetF1, Guenther Steiner – ex-Haas F1 Team Principal, who was in the role during Schumacher’s tenure – told Auto Motor und Sport in an interview why the team went with Nico Hulkenberg for 2023:
“There’s a performance reason. Unfortunately, Mick was only in his second season and there are people who were there before, they have already spent seven, eight, ten years in Formula 1, and they simply know more, they can take the team forward.”
However, Steiner did recognise Schumacher’s growth during the 2022 season, stating:
“He improved a lot [in 2022]. Some moments were very good, I have to say. We were all positively surprised by what he brought. Canada, Silverstone and Austria were very good.”
The German driver achieved his first points in F1 during the 2022 British Grand Prix. At the following round, he secured the Driver of the Day award at the 2022 Austrian Grand Prix.
Mick Schumacher drives for Alpine in the World Endurance Championship. (Image Credit: @SchumacherMick on X)Carlos Sainz
Carlos Sainz lost his chance at a 2025 Ferrari seat when the team announced that Lewis Hamilton would be driving for them alongside Charles Leclerc next year. There have been a variety of rumours circulating about the Spaniard’s future in F1.
First, the 29-year-old was linked to either a Red Bull or Mercedes seat. However, it seems that Sainz wanted a multi-year deal which these teams were not willing to offer.
Second, Sainz was linked to a potential Sauber seat in 2025 alongside Hulkenberg. Sauber will be taken over by Audi in 2026. The Sainz family have strong links with the car manufacturer.
Third, the current Ferrari driver has been linked with Williams to pair up with Alex Albon. Albon recently signed a renewed contract with the team. However, his current teammate, Logan Sargeant is struggling to perform in 2024.
Finally and most recently, with Ocon’s departure from Alpine, Sainz has been suggested as an option for the team.
Will Carlos Sainz be able to negotiate a contract with an F1 team in time to secure a 2025 seat? (Image Credit: @Carlossainz55 on X)Someone else?
Many of the F1 drivers on the 2024 grid have contracts that expire at the end of this season. As well as the two 2024 Alpine drivers, the following drivers do not yet have 2025 F1 contracts: Sergio Perez, Valtteri Bottas, Zhou Guanyu, Kevin Magnussen, Logan Sargeant, Daniel Ricciardo, and Yuki Tsunoda.
With contract negotiations and announcements set to gear up, there will be fierce competition between current F1 drivers to secure a 2025 seat in the driver market. Will a current F1 driver move to Alpine for 2025, or will the French team opt to give a younger driver their chance in F1?
Will there be two seats available, or is Gasly likely to sign a contract renewal with the team? Based on the team’s disappointing performance so far in 2024, scoring only two points and struggling with poor car performance, the French driver may want to step away from the team.
Alongside poor results, the team have also had multiple personnel departures this year. Technical Director Matt Harman and Head of Aerodynamics Dirk de Beer resigned from their roles, while Operations Director Rob White was let go. The team also responded to rumours of a potential sale.
Featured Image Credit: @AlpineF1Team on X