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Alpine has called up Australian racing driver Jack Doohan to complete the first practice session this weekend in Montréal.
Doohan, son of five-time motorcycle world champion Mick, has been the French outfit's reserve driver since 2023 after successful stints in Formula 2 and 3.
He will replace Frenchman Esteban Ocon for the first practice session of the Canadian Grand Prix weekend, and on the same week, Alpine announced that Ocon would finish with the team at the end of the season.
With a seat up for grabs at Alpine from 2025, Doohan gets his chance to audition for the job.
"Really excited to get out on track in Montréal for FP1," Doohan said.
"It will be my first time driving at Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve, which I am looking forward to. I am grateful to the team for the opportunity to get more track time, and also familiarise myself with 2024 machinery early in the season."
His call-up for this weekend's practice session in Montréal comes after Alpine announced the Frenchman will leave the team at the end of 2024.
Ocon caused a stir within the team after retiring from the Monaco Grand Prix following a crash with his teammate on the opening lap of the race.
Despite being Alpine's reserve driver, getting the full-time drive next season is no certainty.
Spaniard Carlos Sainz is looking for a new team after Ferrari elected to sign Lewis Hamilton.
One of the Sauber drivers — Valtteri Bottas and Zhou Guanyu — will be looking for a new team after Sauber sign Nico Hulkenberg from next season.
Born into motor-racing royalty, Jack Doohan has stood on his own two feet since sitting behind the wheel.
He was crowned KA Junior champion of the Australian Kart Championships in 2015, and then won the KA2 classification in 2016.
The young man took his talents to Europe in 2017, finishing third in the junior CIK-FIA European Championship — winning a round held in Sweden.
In 2018 he was the highest placed rookie in the British Formula 4 championship, then joined the highly regarded Asian F3 championship a year later.
In Asia, Doohan won five races, claimed three podiums, and finished second in the championship. His success then translated back to Europe where he achieved two podiums in the Euroformula Open Championship.
Doohan returned to Asia for the F1 championship and again placed second in the title race with six wins from the 15 races.
The Australian then got his shot at the FIA Formula 3 championship with HWA Racelab but was unable to score any points during a difficult season.
In 2021, Doohan showed he can match it with the best In Formula 3 and Formula 2.
In the F3 championship — now with Trident — Doohan won four races and achieved an additional seven podiums.
His success in F3 led to Formula 2 outfit MP Motorsport calling up for the final two rounds of the 2021 season.
With his limited opportunity, Doohan claimed a top-five finish in a race and a second place during a qualifying session.
Doohan's impressive two rounds at the end of 2021 led to the Australian earning a full-time F2 drive with Virtuosi Racing for the 2022 season.
He again shined in F2 with three race wins. He was named as Alpine's reserve driver in 2023 while still competing in F2.
Again in 2023, Doohan achieved three wins and finished third in the championship.
In 2024, Doohan focused all his attention on being Alpine's reserve driver, putting hours into the simulator to help the team better understand their vehicle.
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