Ted Kravitz names the driver who isn’t ‘happy’ with the contract news announced at the Austrian Grand Prix

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The Austrian Grand Prix ended up being an eventful weekend both on and off the track.

Lando Norris led home McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri after a fantastic battle during the first stint of the Austrian Grand Prix.

Ferrari rushed through an update that helped Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton finish third and fourth, while Max Verstappen was crashed into by Mercedes rookie Andrea Kimi Antonelli on the opening lap.

Off the track, there was plenty of talk about the F1 driver market and the future of Max Verstappen and George Russell.

Ted Kravitz thinks Russell is likely to stay at Mercedes, but he hasn’t put pen to paper yet on any deal, with Antonelli in the same boat.

However, further down the pit lane, another team did make a decision on one of their drivers.

Alpine announced that Franco Colapinto’s initial five-race contract had been extended on a race-by-race basis.

Speaking during the race weekend, Ted Kravitz believes that the decision hasn’t gone down very well with the driver he replaced, Jack Doohan.

READ MORE: Who is Alpine 2025 F1 driver Franco Colapinto? Everything you need to know

Ted Kravitz says Jack Doohan ‘isn’t particularly happy’ with Franco Colapinto’s Alpine contract news

Kravitz was reflecting on the weekend’s action on Ted’s Notebook and talking after qualifying, he explained: “Alpine, Gasly P10, Colapinto P14, Gasly was P4 in Q1 with a great lap and in Q2, P6, four-tenths off P1 actually, so Gasly’s absolutely doing very well.

“Colapinto was into Q2 but couldn’t progress past that, only P14, two-tenths of a second off getting into Q3.

“Colapinto’s deal is being extended race by race say the Alpine team.

“That’s good for Colapinto but not great for Jack Doohan, who is here and around the place and clearly not particularly happy about that.

“But, Colapinto seems to be getting better. He was better in Canada, and he’s been getting better here as well, despite the slightly lowly starting position.”

READ MORE: Who is Alpine reserve driver Jack Doohan? All to know from girlfriend to dad

Alpine considering another driver change after latest Franco Colapinto disappointment

Fans weren’t happy with Colapinto’s move on Piastri in Austria as he drove the Australian off the road while being lapped during the closing stages of the race.

Yuki Tsunoda had already spun the Argentine driver earlier in the race, ending any hope he had of scoring his first point of the season.

Gabriel Bortoleto’s eighth-place finish means Colapinto is now the only driver currently on the grid who is yet to get off the mark.

Doohan also failed to score a point during his six-race stint with the team, while teammate Pierre Gasly isn’t having the best time either.

Gasly was constantly on the team radio at the Red Bull Ring complaining about his car, although it didn’t appear there was any fault.

Alpine are now exploring a move for Valtteri Bottas to try and solve the problems they’re having in the second car.

The Finn is far more experienced than Alpine’s other options, and while Doohan will feel hard done by given the excuse Flavio Briatore’s team made when deciding to retain Colapinto, it sounds like their patience is beginning to run out.