Flavio Briatore addresses Alpine driver swap following dramatic 12 hours

Alpine executive advisor Flavio Briatore has addressed the team's decision to swap Jack Doohan and Franco Colapinto, following a dramatic 12 hours for the outfit.  The announcement confirming Alpine's decision to promote Colapinto from next weekend's Emilia Romagna Grand Prix fell just 12 hours after the shock news that Oliver Oakes had resigned as team principal.  Briatore has taken on Oakes' duties alongside being an executive advisor, with his first responsibility being to discuss the reason behind the driver change.  Colapinto has been given the next five races to prove himself alongside Pierre Gasly, before a second evaluation over the second seat takes place before the British Grand Prix.  Doohan remains an integral part of the Enstone-based outfit and will become one of its reserve drivers, before potentially returning later this season. The Australian driver has been praised for his mature approach to Alpine's decision to demote him, with Briatore wanting a clear picture of who to field next season. "Having reviewed the opening races of the season, we have come to the decision to put Franco in the car alongside Pierre for the next five races," said Briatore.  "With the field being so closely matched this year, and with a competitive car, which the team has drastically improved in the past 12 months, we are in a position where we see the need to rotate our line-up.  "We also know the 2026 season will be an important one for the team and having a complete and fair assessment of the drivers this season is the right thing to do in order to maximise our ambitions next year.  "We continue to support Jack at the team, as he has acted in a very professional manner in his role as a race driver so far this season. The next five races will give us an opportunity to try something different and after this time period we will assess our options."