A post from Alpine’s X account showing outgoing Ferrari driver Carlos Sainz Jr. and Australia’s rising star Jack Doohan has sparked rumours throughout the Formula 1 community, wondering if the French team has just soft-launched their driver partnership for 2025.
Alpine will look like an entirely new team next season when their yet-to-be-confirmed drivers line up on the grid in 2025. The French team has confirmed that Estaban Ocon will leave constructor at the end of the 2024 season following the end of his contract. With Pierre Gasly’s future in the sport still undetermined, fans are left to wonder what the future will hold for this team.
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Formula 1 is a brutal sport for a lot of reasons; chief among them is the fact that there are only 20 seats available to the fastest drivers on the grid. It’s also one of the few sports where trading of drivers, staff and other personnel is extremely common, given the limited pool of available talent within the sport. It leads to intense speculation with each passing circuit, with drivers looking over their shoulders for their rivals waiting in the wings.
Of course, with the 2024 season in full swing, this year is certainly no different. Seats are filling up fast, and the pressure is mounting for teams to secure the best talent available ahead of the chasing pack.
Ferrari’s outgoing star Carlos Sainz Jr. is arguably the hottest prospect on the grid, and after the Spaniard confirmed he wouldn’t be taking Lewis Hamilton’s vacant seat at Mercedes, the enduring game of musical chairs still plays. But if he’s not careful, he could be left without the seat he wants when the music inevitably stops.
For Sainz, there are really only a handful of options available: Sauber (soon to be Audi), Williams and Alpine. Beyond that, it would be hard to see Sainz signing for another team that would have to displace their established partnership to make the necessary room.
However, if this recent post from Alpine is any indication, a possible driver link-up with Sainz and Jack Doohan could make the French outfit a formidable force in 2025.