Alpine F1 academy driver says he has rejected Indy Car drive for next season

Alpine reserve driver Jack Doohan has turned down an opportunity to race in IndyCar next season in order to remain focused on his ultimate goal — F1.

Doohan, 20, came through the ranks of Red Bull Racing before being signed as a reserve driver for midfield team Alpine F1. The Australian was most recently in action at the Abu Dhabi GP's Free Practice 1 where he competed alongside several other rookie drivers, securing a 13th-place finish.

While a flurry of opportunities presented themselves to Doohan, the 20-year-old driver says he is solely focused on his ambitions to secure a permanent F1 seat. In a recent interview with Speedcafe, Doohan admitted to having multiple options across various racing categories, including IndyCar.

"At the moment, I don’t have anything set to race. (I) had quite a lot of options and in all sub formulas, and inside formulas other than Formula 1... So not that the opportunities were shy – Super Formula, IndyCar, Hypercar, whatever it was – I was very fortunate to have those options."

However, despite the opportunities, Doohan emphasized his current focus on Formula 1. He said:

“However, at this point in time, I feel it’s crucial that I focus only on Formula 1, which is heavily provided by Alpine that I’m able to stay within a car.”

Doohan also raced as a test driver during the Mexican GP earlier this year, where he ranked 18th after completing 25 laps.

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Jack Doohan on testing Alpine machinery

As a reserve driver for the Enstone-based outfit, Doohan has tested several Alpine models, including the A-521 — a 2021 spec-car model. Looking ahead to the next season, he is set to continue in this role, testing the A522.

Reflecting on his testing experience, the former Red Bull driver said:

"It’s very valuable. Testing recent has been in the ’21 cars, so we know that ’21 to ’23, it’s been quite a step and quite a lot of differences – starting off with the massive tyres and a little bit heavier, more downforce."

"But at least the ’22 to ’24 characteristics will be there, will be some similarities. It will be in a semi-similar sort of weight ratio, also on 18-inch tyres," he added.

Doohan emphasized the importance of acclimating to race weekend formats whenever called upon. He said:

"It’s just about getting myself really into some race weekend formats to make sure that if I do have to hop in the car and do have to step in, that I can make sure that I do the job in the best possible way."

It remains to be seen what comes next in the career of the Alpine reserve driver, who has already confirmed that he won't return to F2 next season.