Who is Jack Doohan? Australia's young driver making his 2025 F1 debut in Melbourne

Jack Doohan is one of five drivers joining the 2025 Formula 1 grid who can technically still be classed as rookies.

With the pressure clearly on Doohan to perform from the get-go in his first full-time F1 contract with Alpine, here is everything you need to know about the Australian racer who kicked off his debut season with his home grand prix in Melbourne.

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Doohan made an early entry to the pinnacle of motorsport last season after Alpine confirmed that the 22-year-old would replace Esteban Ocon for the 2024 season finale at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, where he made his official F1 debut.

The Australian has now stepped up from reserve driver to a full-time seat from 2025 onwards at Alpine, whilst Ocon has moved to rival team Haas.

Alpine have been in a state of flux, after the exit of team principal Bruno Famin and the appointment of Oliver Oakes as his successor. As the dust settles on this managerial upheaval, Alpine have now finalised their driver roster for next season.

After missing out on Carlos Sainz, who decided to join Williams for 2025, Alpine opted to promote from within, handing former reserve driver Doohan his big break.

The young Australian will team up with Pierre Gasly, who also signed a contract extension with the team.

Jack Doohan - Early life and career

The Doohan family name is synonymous with motorsport. Son of five-time 500cc motorcycle world champion Mick Doohan, Jack has forged his own path in the world of single-seater racing.

His journey began in karting, after F1 legend Michael Schumacher gifted him his first kart, which the future F1 star used to get to grips behind the wheel from as early as the age of three.

Doohan quickly established himself as a force to be reckoned with. He was crowned KA Junior champion of the Australian Kart Championships in 2015 and won the KA2 classification in 2016, but these were only the first steps on a ladder that would eventually lead to the pinnacle of motorsport.

A subsequent move to Europe proved fruitful, with a third-place finish in the CIK-FIA European Championship in 2017 and a strong performance in British Formula 4 in 2018 where he finished as first-placed rookie and fifth overall.

Asia then became the next proving ground for the young Australian where he secured five race wins, three podium finishes and a second place in the F3 Asian Championship in 2019 for Hitech Grand Prix, before returning to Europe with Double R Racing and securing two podiums and 11th place overall in the Euroformula Open Championship.

Doohan returned to the F3 Asian Championship in 2020, this time with Pinnacle Motorsport, and once again finished in the runner-up spot after missing out on the title due to technical failures.

The FIA Formula 3 Championship followed, presenting a more challenging environment in which he struggled to secure points for HWA Racelab during the campaign.

However, in 2021, Doohan stepped up to Trident for his second F3 season and delivered a championship-contending performance. His four race victories and seven podium finishes secured him second place overall while propelling Trident to the teams' title.

This impressive performance earned him a Formula 2 opportunity with MP Motorsport in the final two rounds of the 2021 season, where he achieved a top-five finish and second in qualifying.

Building on his F3 success, Doohan secured a full-time F2 seat with Virtuosi Racing in 2022, adding three more wins to his tally. That same year, he transitioned from the Red Bull Junior Team, where he had been since 2017, to the Alpine Academy, before stepping up as the French outfit's reserve in 2023.

Balancing his F1 duties with a full F2 campaign for Invicta Virtuosi Racing, Doohan secured a strong third place overall, thanks to his two race wins and five podium finishes.

Having fully immersed himself in the Alpine team in 2024, Doohan is now poised to take the next step in his career - a full-time F1 seat in 2025, where he will become the second Australian on the grid, joining McLaren's Oscar Piastri.

READ MORE: F1 2025 Driver Lineup: Big names on the move as full grid complete

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