Williams Makes Brutal Mid-Season Decision: Sargeant Out & Colapinto In
Aug.28 - Alex Albon says Williams' decision to immediately axe Logan Sargeant is "brutal".
In the wake of rumours that Liam Lawson or Mick Schumacher were being considered to replace the underperforming and crash-prone American, team boss James Vowles ultimately opted for Williams' own junior rookie, Franco Colapinto.
"To replace a driver mid-season is not a decision we have taken lightly," Vowles said, "but we believe this gives Williams the best chance to compete for points over the remainder of the season.
"We have just brought a large upgrade to the car and need to maximise every points-scoring opportunity in a remarkably tight midfield battle."
He admits it's "incredibly tough" for Sargeant, but added: "We will support him to continue his racing career for the future."
Williams incumbent Albon reacted on social media: "I know first-hand how brutal this sport can be and it's tough to see Logan leave the team mid-season.
"You gave it your all, brother, and it's been a pleasure being teammates with you. I know whatever you do next, you'll be awesome," he added.
Vowles' former boss Toto Wolff admits another option for Williams was the Mercedes junior Kimi Antonelli, but "it would not have been wise to disturb him and put him in a Williams".
It is also believed that Lawson was Vowles' top pick for Sargeant's seat, but Red Bull would not release him.
Argentinean Colapinto, 21, will have to vacate the race seat after Abu Dhabi to make way for Carlos Sainz in 2025. The Ferrari driver will join Williams at a notably ambitious moment for the Grove based team, which unveiled the first major car upgrade of 2024 last weekend.
Albon's upgraded car was excluded from qualifying when the new floor was found to be illegal. Sainz told the Spanish broadcaster DAZN that the news at Zandvoort was somewhat alarming.
"I will find out what happened, yes," Sainz, 29, said. "I will ask them and I will find out for sure. It's important."
Vowles and Albon, however, are confident, especially as the team boss revealed that "There will be another upgrade" before the end of the season.
"In the simulator," Albon told reporters last Sunday, "the next upgrade feels like an even bigger step forward."
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Franco Colapinto ~ a name one would almost associate with being a Ferrari driver!
Great to see a bright young talent given an opportunity to demonstrate his skills on the big stage.
Good luck Franco!
It seems Doc was either misquoted by the media, or spoke with forked tongue, with his comments about Liam Lawson being given a chance at Williams!
So you dont think hell stuff it in the wall within 3 races?
,If he plays it safe, hell definitely not score any points, and so not impress any future employers, its a worse situation for him , than for Williams Imo , Dont get me wrong, i hope he proves me wrong, but the tough race craft of the Haas and Alpine drivers will test him severely
Ohh, yee of litle faith! No blue paint on walls!
Give the kid a break! He doesn't have a reputation for destroying cars, so I believe (and hope) he will retain that attribute. It's his chance to show his abilities to the world. I think he will be guided by Albon and do well.
A totally unexpected choice even for interim purposes, although Sargeant getting dropped during the season itself was predictable after his FP3 crash.
I'm surprised about the ''we will support him to continue his racing career for the future'' reference, though, as the fact they already decided to replace him with Sainz shows the investment they made into him pre-F1 proved useless & thus, I fail to see any point in him having any link, even indirect, to the F1 world beyond this year's end, especially since he won't return to being a full-time driver anyway.
If Williams still believed in him, they might as well let him continue as a full-time driver instead, so that he'd gain experience uninterruptedly & thus could realistically become better over time, as even a single year away from F1 racing is unideal in this regard, let alone more, given Albon & Sainz are both on multi-year deals.
Latifi also used to be in their driver academy & he left the F1 world altogether, so I don't see why Sargeant's situation should be any different unless the reference is about something other than what I initially assumed.
He was never promising Jere. Like you I'd like to switch them out but they have corporate stuff going on
Press releases are just so polite and oh yeah full of sh*** usually , LS is toast, the rest is just Williams politeness and politics
Good point, I didn't think that way.
After FP3 at Monza, it is encouraging to see both Williams cars in the top ten ~ P8 and P9! Colapinto eased himself into the practice sessions and in FP3 was only 3 tenths away from Albon ~ and didn't have any excursions or do any gardening. Just a couple of minor gravel touches and no damage to the car.
Would be nice to see both Williams cars make it into Q3!