Cruel axe tipped for one F1 driver who experts claim "hasn't done enough"

There will be some F1 drivers nervously looking over their shoulders as teams line up potential replacements for next year.

The summer break is when silly season ramps up and driver changes are agreed.

Valtteri Bottas and Sergio Perez are two drivers without race seats who are desperate to be back in action in 2026.

So, who will miss out on the 2026 F1 driver line-up?

The Crash.net team have identified the F1 driver who hasn’t done enough to deserve a contract for next season…

Connor McDonagh: It’s fair to argue that this is the strongest crop of F1 drivers in the sport’s history. Very few have underperformed or underdelivered so far this season.

Franco Colapinto hasn’t done enough to deserve a race seat at Alpine in 2026

The Argentine put in several starring performances for Williams as a mid-season replacement for Logan Sargeant last year. It’s easy to forget that Colapinto’s form led to questions about Alex Albon and how good he really is.

Colapinto hasn’t been an upgrade on Jack Doohan, who was under immediate pressure to keep his seat, even before the start of the season. With a host of drivers available to Flavio Briatore on the driver market, Colapinto will have to improve in the second half of the season – if he’s still in the car for Zandvoort.

Lewis Larkam: Franco Colapinto is the obvious candidate here, but there’s also a case to argue that Yuki Tsunoda hasn’t done enough.

Since making the jump from Racing Bulls to replace Liam Lawson just two races into the 2025 season, Tsunoda has been enduring a torrid time at Red Bull.

While data shows Tsunoda has been able to close the gulf to Max Verstappen compared to his previous teammates, the Japanese has little to show for his efforts on paper, suffering a spate of lacklustre results.

After recording three points finishes in his first five Red Bull outings, Tsunoda has not returned to the top-10 since and appears lost with the tricky-to-drive RB21.

The bigger question, however, is who would Red Bull put in the second seat? Racing Bulls’ impressive rookie Isack Hadjar would be the favourite, but there are no guarantees that he would fare any better.

There is still time for Tsunoda to turn things around, and Laurent Mekies’ arrival has offered him a lifeline, but with Red Bull’s relationship with Honda coming to an end upon the conclusion of this season, there is a real possibility he leaves the Red Bull family for good.

Lewis Duncan: Jack Doohan’s sacking by Alpine was already a stinky situation for the Australian, who even before the season had started was being tipped to be dropped.

That eventually happened after the Miami Grand Prix, with Franco Colapinto taking his place. Colapinto arguably did enough to merit a full-time drive for 2026 after his solid turn as Logan Sargeant’s replacement at Williams last year with two top 10 results in nine grands prix.

Repeating that form at Alpine in Doohan’s place, however, has proven difficult. Now, Alpine has put another underwhelming challenger on the race track this season but Pierre Gasly has gotten 20 points out of it so far - including a sixth at the wet British Grand Prix.

Colapinto has no points in his seven starts and hasn’t actually bettered Doohan’s best result of 13th. While this episode raises a wider discussion on protections that should be put in place for rookies and their contracts, the situation Alpine has put itself in should result in some heads rolling at the highest management level.

Derry Munikartono: Franco Colapinto’s arrival at Alpine was meant to be an upgrade from the underperforming Jack Doohan. The Argentinian was handed the seat starting from Imola, but so far, he hasn’t lived up to the hype.

His stock soared last year after delivering flashes of brilliance as Williams’ mid-season replacement for Logan Sargeant. But at Alpine, that wasn’t the case. A best finish of 13th — matching the man he replaced — is hardly the statement he needed, and his crash during the Pirelli test at the Hungaroring only deepened the doubts.

His underwhelming performances have put him under the microscope as Alpine evaluates its options for Pierre Gasly’s teammate. Rumors suggest Mercedes reserve driver Valtteri Bottas has emerged as the main threat to Colapinto’s seat.

Yes, he’s fast. But in Formula 1, speed without consistency is nothing. Alpine needs safe hands for their struggling car, and right now, Colapinto is anything but. The clock is ticking, and it’s not on his side.

Rachit Thukral: Franco Colapinto. While wrestling an uncompetitive car in a high-pressure situation explains part of his poor return this season, he has done little to justify the high price Alpine paid to loan him from Williams.

That doesn’t mean Colapinto is undeserving of a place on the F1 grid altogether, as he has shown he can deliver with the right tools in the right environment. But pairing him with Pierre Gasly for the remainder of the year feels like the wrong move, when he has done so little to alleviate Alpine during a difficult time for the team.

At this stage, Renault might be better served by giving Jack Doohan more seat time and preparing him for 2026, when the expected switch to Mercedes power could transform Alpine’s fortunes.