Schumacher delivers harsh judgment on axed Doohan

15:01, 08 May

Updated: 17:27, 08 May

byKada Sarkozi

This week, it was announced that Alpine made the decision to replace Jack Doohan with Franco Colapinto. According to former F1 driver Ralf Schumacher, it's a decision that makes sense.

Ralf Schumacher already predicted that Doohan will be replaced by Alpine, and he was proven right by the team ahead of the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix.

"Jack Doohan is a nice guy, but not good enough for Formula 1," the former Toyota and Williams driver began on Sky Sports Germany.

"He made a lot of mistakes, was overwhelmed and took a long time to learn. I understand Flavio [Briatore]'s decision. Colapinto is familiar with Formula 1. But he eventually crashed three times too. Yet, I think Flavio Briatore believes in him, and he clearly brings a lot of money."

Briatore looks for the best driver

According to the German, Briatore is looking to find the best teammate alongside Pierre Gasly for 2026.

"His approach is that this year is a bridging year before the Mercedes engine is in the back next year. He wants to find out who the best number two or even number one is for the new, more successful 2026 season," says the German.

However, Schumacher was also critical of the way Alpine communicated regarding the situation. "If they had said beforehand that Jack Doohan would race in five or six races, that would have been fine. This only leaves room for speculation," he concluded.

This article was written in collaboration with Ludo van Denderen