As well as FP1 rookie sessions, the Australian is undertaking 10 days of private F1 testing on older cars throughout the season, while also doing extensive simulator work at the factory, where the facilities are being upgraded this year.
Should either Esteban Ocon or Pierre Gasly move elsewhere as the silly season ramps up, Doohan will be well placed to take their seat, while also potentially being attractive to other teams should there be no vacancy in the Enstone camp.
“Outside of the current F1 grid for a driver who hasn’t driven a race in F1 I’m definitely the driver with the highest mileage in the machinery,” he told Motorsport.com.
“And that’s not over one lap, that’s race distances, in the wet, in the dry, high temps, low temps. So I’m starting to see it all, which is really good and for sure only appealing to F1 teams.
“For me, the sole focus at the moment is trying to secure my place on the grid for next year, while also making sure I’m doing the job in these tests because they’re very important as well.”
His priority is to convince Alpine team boss Bruno Famin that he is the right man to replace Ocon or Gasly, should either of the current drivers depart.
“I’m absolutely determined,” he said of his desire to be on the 2025 grid. “That’s the plan, and that’s also the plan with myself, Bruno and the team.
“At the moment, I have a long contract with Alpine. So I want to be here. I’ve worked with the team now for three years.
“Everyone is a familiar face, we have a good connection, it’s a good atmosphere, there’s a good team morale with us all, so to be able to hop in the car would feel like home. So I look forward to hopefully doing it. “
Jack Doohan, Alpine
Photo by: Alpine
The 10 days of private testing, a similar program to the one pursued by former Alpine reserve Oscar Piastri before his move to McLaren In the summer of 2022, Doohan will see thousands at a variety of current F1 venues.
“It’s one day in the ’21 car, and then the further nine in the 2022 car,” he said. “So at the end of the year, mileage is going to be quite good.
“Already, I’ve spent quite a lot of time in the car. And I feel ready to hop like I did in Abu Dhabi in FP1, jumping in straight after F2, and was only half a tenth off Pierre. So this is only going to further help, and it’s the 2022 car, which is the next-gen.
“I’ll be in Qatar and Abu Dhabi, and then the typical European circuits, I’m sure we’ll do Monza, Red Bull Ring, Silverstone, Barcelona.
“I get to go to Zandvoort. It’s not a typical circuit that we go to with the F1 cars to test. We know that’s a technical and difficult circuit, so to get two days there, that’d be really cool. So I’ “I’ll have a good handful of circuits that I’ll have been to.”
Doohan has abandoned F2 and is not racing this year despite earlier talks about him joining Alpine’s WEC programme.
He will thus concentrate on his F1 duties, which involve being available as a reserve for all 24 races.
“For sure it was discussed,” he said of WEC. “I don’t think it was ever a subject of it being too much, it was more that I couldn’t solely focus on F1. And there are conflicting races where I couldn’t be doing the same support.
“It’s not the end of the world if I’m not in the sim, but we have some really good programs at the end of the year in the sim.
“And just having myself in there is just so beneficial for the team, because hopefully in the future, I’ll be a race driver as well for the team. So having that connection will be very good.”
Jack Doohan, Pierre Gasly, Esteban Ocon, Alpine
Photo by: Alpine
While some teams have more than one reserve driver in order to split the workload, Doohan will be on duty for all 24 races for Alpine, either in person or within easy reach by air.
“Any race that is further than three hours away by plane, I have to be there for the whole weekend,” he noted. “Any less, which is the majority of the European races, I’ll be on the sim all Friday, and flying straight to the race after.
“Or if I’m not on the track on those weekends, I’ll be in an area where the standby is within enough time.”
Regarding not racing in 2024, he said: “It’s strange. I’m trying to be racing outside of motorsport activities with my fitness, triathlons and running. I really enjoy it, and it’s also a good way to stay fit and stay head sharp , putting myself in unknown territories.”
