Hirakawa replaces Doohan at Alpine for Japanese GP FP1 outing

Ryo Hirakawa will drive Jack Doohan’s Alpine in opening practice for this weekend’s 2025 Formula 1 Japanese Grand Prix at Suzuka.

The Toyota World Endurance Championship champion has joined Alpine as a reserve driver for the season after fulfilling the same role at McLaren last year.

This is being done because of FIA rules which state each F1 car must be driven by a driver with no more than two grand prix starts at two FP1 sessions in a campaign.

Hirakawa fulfilled part of this obligation for McLaren last year, making his F1 weekend debut at the 2024 Abu Dhabi GP replacing Oscar Piastri in an MCL38.

“I’m very excited, I can’t wait to drive the A525 in Free Practice 1 this weekend,” the Japanese driver said in an Alpine team statement.

“I’m looking back to 18 years ago to 2007, the first time I went to watch the Japanese Grand Prix, it was a different track, Fuji, but it was Formula 1 in Japan.

“Since then, I started my racing career and now to drive during the weekend is going to be a dream come true, I just can’t wait.

“I have got everything prepared, we did simulator work in Enstone [the team’s headquarters] a few days ago and I’m going to enjoy the moment.

“Hopefully the weather is good, it will be a short session, but I will enjoy it and do my best for the team to hopefully input some direction on set up. I just want to add my appreciation to everyone at the team for the opportunity and support.”

Doohan, who has started his rookie season under considerable pressure due to Alpine stockpiling reserve drivers, including ex-temporary Williams racer Franco Colapinto, acknowledged that Hirakawa “has a lot of experience here so it will be good to take some of that knowledge for the weekend”.

Hirakawa raced in Japan’s Super Formula between 2013 and 2023 – the national single-seater championship that hits F1 speeds and races multiple times a year at Suzuka.

Autosport understands that Hirakawa left McLaren’s reserve driver fold to join Alpine because he was offered a better shot at one day making an F1 bow as Piastri and Lando Norris are locked up at McLaren for several years.

Hirakawa is a double WEC champion with Toyota, with which he won the 2022 Le Mans 24 Hours at the very start of the championship’s Hypercar era.

His Toyota deal also means he is an unofficial reserve driver for Haas, which has a technical partnership with the Japanese manufacturer, and has completed F1 end-of-season and Testing of Previous Cars (TPC) running for the American squad in recent months.