Former World Champion F1 Jacques Villeneuve said Jack Doohan was driving with “despair” after it was revealed that a mistake led to his great clash in the second practice in the Japanese Grand Prix.
Dodohan lost control at the high speed turn 1 in his second flying lap of Suzuka county after Alpine chose to run reserve Ryo Hirakawa driver in his home race in the first practice.
At first it seemed as if his alpine at the end, but the close inspection of the repetitions showed that DRS on its back arm was still open.
On low fuel, curves 1 in Suzuka is generally flat so that drivers do not brake. DRS closes automatically when the driver touches the brake, so by going to the first corner, the driver should close the DRS strap by pressing a button on their wheel.
Doohan did not do so, which made him lose strength and go to a large rotation before hitting the wall.
“We are all facilitated when we see Jack leave his incident in free practice 2 and happy to see he is okay after his preliminary checks,” said Alpine Oliver Oakes.
“It was a mistake of not closing the DRS at turn 1. Something something to learn and I know Jack and the team will be ready for tomorrow. His crew will work hard to prepare the car after injury.”
Dodohan added: “First of all, I’m okay after the incident. It was a heavy, something that caught me by surprise, and I will learn from it.
“I know the team has a lot of work ahead to repair the car that will go tomorrow, so thank you in advance for them for their efforts. My focus is tomorrow where we will have free 3 practice to prepare to qualify.”
Did the ‘despair’ doohan make a costly mistake?
DOOHAN entered 2025 under pressure after Alpine signed Franco Colapinto, which led to speculation that the Argentine is lining up as a replacement.
The 22-year-old crashed from his home Grand Prix and ended up 13th week later in China.
“The problem is that he is known before the first race that he would probably not end the season,” said World Champion 1997 Jacques Villeneuve Sky Sports F1.
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After Jack Doohan clashing from the second practice for Japanese Grand Prix, Naomi Schiff and Jacques Villeneuve discuss how long they think he left in the alpine
“He was put under extraordinary pressure from (Alpine Boss) Flavio Bratory, mainly with colapinto waiting in his arms, and the writing was on the wall. And his driving has shown despair, having to prove that he is at least better than (Pierre) Gasly, so they should keep it.
“When he has already been told,” make some competitions, but then you will surely be replaced “… You can see it in its driving. It is not comfortable. And when a driver is in that situation psychologically, driving will not be natural and small mistakes will begin to happen.”
Can Lawson-Tsunoda SWAP Alpine and DOOHAN affect?
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Jack Doohan and Carlos Sainz lose control on the opening lap and glue it to the wall at the start of the Australian GP
DOOHAN, who is in a one -year agreement in Alpine, completed the race in the 2023 Formula 2 championship before passing almost a full season on the margins last year.
However, he was called to the end of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix season when Esteban Ocon left Alpine early.
Sky Sports F1 ‘S Naomi Schiff thinks that Red Bull’s decision to exchange Liam Lawson and Yuki Tsunoda may consequently affect Doohan.
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Jack Doohan gave a cold response to any ‘pressure’ suggestion coming from Franco Corapinto joining Alpine
“The weekend conversation has been how Liam was destroyed after two competitions, and I think it can sometimes give inspiration to other teams to make difficult decisions early,” Schiff said.
“We do not know how many competitions Jack should testify. It is harsh enough to come to a circuit like this and pull it out of a FP1 (for hirakawa) that is so important about a track that is so technical when he has to learn the car, learn the features about the circuit.
“I wonder why they didn’t put Pierre out of the car. He knows this track, he knows the car, he has been here several times. He feels harsh.”
Direct Japanese GP program of Sky Sports F1
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Look again some of the most dramatic moments that have taken place in the Japanese Grand Prix
Saturday 5 April
- 3.15AM: Japanese GP practice three (session starts at 3.30am)*
- 6 Breakfast: Japanese Construction Qualification GP **
- 7 morning: Japanese GP qualification*
- 9 Morning: TED Qualifying Notebook*
Sunday April 6
- 4.30 morning: Japanese GP Construction: Grand Prix Sunday*
- 6 morning: Grand Prix Japanese*
- 8 Breakfast: Japanese GP reaction: Controlled Flag*
- 9 Morning: TED Notebook*
*Also live in Sky Sports Main event
The formula is in the Suzuka iconic circuit for the Japanese Grand Prix this weekend, Live on Sky Sports F1. Stream Sky Sports with now – without contract, cancel at any time
