Jack Doohan Could Make Shock F1 Return With Haas in São Paulo As Ryo Hirakawa Faces WEC Clash

Chaos seems to have become the theme of the weekend for Haas in Mexico City, where the team announced a sudden driver swap overnight. Dropping Esteban Ocon, Haas has brought in Ryo Hirakawa as his replacement. But it looks like more changes are coming to the team, with Jack Doohan waiting in the wings.

Ocon seems all but certain to have been ruled out for the remainder of the season, but Hirakawa is not the team’s dedicated third driver. That has opened the door for Doohan, who was anyway going to be Haas’ reserve driver for the remainder of 2026, starting in Sao Paulo.

The Australian driver was previously a part of the Alpine setup, but was abruptly let go from his role after just six races in 2026. Franco Colapinto ended up taking his seat, and Doohan had come close to securing a racing role with Haas, but it wasn’t meant to be.

However, with Hirakawa expected in Monza for the final round of the World Endurance Championship, Doohan now has his shot at redemption. Should the Australian driver perform well, Haas will have a solid option for their permanent reserve driver, given the team has no obvious open seat for the next season.

While Haas has not officially confirmed Oliver Bearman in the second seat yet, it is a mere formality at this point given the Briton’s performance.

Haas Holding Rafael Camara Back for Jack Doohan?

Whispers from within the F1 paddock claim that the Aussie driver had made a strong impression on Haas during the team’s TPC testing, but the impression wasn’t as strong as that of Rafael Camara. With Ocon being let go earlier than expected, many felt like Camara would be getting an early debut.

However, Haas seemingly felt like throwing the Brazilian driver in at the deep end wasn’t the right choice. Therefore, bringing Doohan in as Hirakawa’s replacement made more sense to the team.

With the move, the American outfit could also be hoping to not add any extra pressure on the Brazilian driver, who is busy fighting for the F2 title, with two more races left in the second division of the sport.

On the contrary, Haas could use the remainder of the season to see how Doohan performs, and if he does well, they could have the development driver they need for the 2027 season.

Rafael Camara Has Already Decided on His Racing Number for Next Season

Months before his planned F1 debut, Camara has already landed on the decision to race with number 50 on his car for the 2027 season. The soon-to-be F1 rookie originally wanted number five, but that is currently being used by Gabriel Bortoleto.

Listing the reason as to why he wanted that number, Camara said that he was born on 05/05/2005 and that’s why he wanted the number five. However, having spoken to his dad, the 21-year-old decided to use number 50.

Interestingly enough, Hirakawa will also be using number 50 on his Haas car for the Mexico City GP. Should he not return for any of the future races for Haas before Camara, the 32-year-old will have to forfeit his number with the FIA for the Brazilian driver to use it.

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