F1 star ‘out of contract’ after Austrian GP as brutal mid-season axe looms

An F1 star is facing the prospect of being ditched after this weekend's Austrian Grand Prix following a poor run of form.

Franco Colapinto was brought in to replace Jack Doohan at Alpine in early May after the latter's dismal start to the 2025 campaign, but was immediately given an ultimatum to prove he deserved the seat on a long-term basis.

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A statement released by team initially announcing the driver swap read: "As part of an ongoing assessment of its driver line-up, the team has made the decision to rotate one of its race seats for the next five rounds of the 2025 FIA Formula One World Championship.

"BWT Alpine Formula One Team therefore announces that Franco Colapinto will be paired with Pierre Gasly from the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix, ahead of a new evaluation before the British Grand Prix in July."

The race at Silverstone is next on the calendar after this Sunday's event at the Red Bull Ring, meaning this may be Colapinto's final opportunity to impress having finished no higher than 13th in his four outings to date.

There remains some confusion about the 22-year-old's contract, however, with Alpine advisor Flavio Briatore issuing a bizarre U-turn last month on the five-race deadline which was initially confirmed by the team.

Whilst Briatore claimed Colapinto would 'race as much as needed', the Argentine racer is still under pressure to perform as the team assesses their driver options for 2026.

Colapinto running out of time to prove F1 credentials

The Silverstone GP will mark Colapinto's one-year anniversary in F1 having made his debut at the iconic track for Williams in 2024 during FP1.

Just like this season, he was drafted in midway through the campaign to replace an underperforming driver - Logan Sargeant - and caught the eye of several team bosses early on, with a surprise eighth-place finish in Azerbaijan on his second outing a clear indicator of his talent.

His form did tail off towards the end of the year however, failing to finish three of the last four grands prix, but he had already been signed by Alpine as a reserve driver after opting to leave Williams following the arrival of Carlos Sainz for 2025.

The 22-year-old can ill-afford to find himself once again relegated to the sidelines going into the second half of the 2025 season, a prospect which could become a reality should he struggle again this weekend.

With so few drivers getting a third chance to show what they can do in the top tier of world motorsport, Colapinto is fast running out of time to make his case.

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