Australia’s sidelined hope Jack Doohan has received the expected hammer blow to his chances of a Formula One return after his Alpine team announced Franco Colapinto would continue to drive for them in the championship next season.

Doohan was ditched after six races of this season by the French team, with 22-year-old Argentine Colapinto brought in to replace him, with the Australian staying on to drive as reserve.

Though Colapinto has proved a disappointment, like Doohan not having scored a point for the Renault-owned team, Alpine announced on Friday they are retaining him to have his first full season alongside their No.1 Pierre Gasly in 2026.

The news, announced ahead of Sunday’s Sao Paulo Grand Prix in Brazil where Colapinto’s Argentine fans are expected to flock in droves, had been

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