Oliver Oakes: I can't support Duane all the time.

      In Melbourne, Jack Duane pulled out of his first home Grand Prix almost immediately after the start – the Australian Alpine F1 racer crashed his car on the first lap, and that was the end of it for him.

      Since Franco Colapinto, a fast Argentinean who has proven himself well over the nine races he ran last year, performs the duties of a reserve driver in the Renault factory team, it is clear that such an unsuccessful start to the season gives rise to talk about the possibility of a reshuffle in the Alpine team.

      Oliver Oakes, the Alpine team leader, admitted that he had discussed with Duane the question of his future prospects: "We had a conversation about this back in Abu Dhabi (in December), but only briefly. But in Bahrain, we spent more time on this. He worked at the Enstone base in the winter, and it was a different situation – he was working on a simulator then, and the moment was not right, but during the pre-season tests we had the opportunity to discuss everything.

      But I can't support him all the time. He has to show what he's worth on the track, and I think he's doing it. At the same time, in my opinion, building relationships with the team, he reacts very correctly to all the rumors - he never gets discouraged and holds himself normally. But we must admit that in Formula 1, attitudes towards you can change very quickly: one minute a driver could be considered a hero, and now he has already been listed as a complete loser.

      A racer has to show results, and do it consistently, but Jack knows this, and it shows in his attitude.… Maybe I shouldn't say this, but he should still have more faith in himself, tell himself: "I'll be fine." I really believe he's capable of handling it.… 

      But in Formula 1, it's important not only to be fast, but also to be able to handle pressure, and also to learn quickly from any mistakes. It will also be difficult for beginners in China, because this track is not one of those where they have worked on tests. But I think it will be a little easier for them at the Bahrain stage after that."