We see the same thing year after year - Formula Two front runners being passed over in favour of drivers with, say a little bit more cash, when it comes to seats in Formula One. And again, year after year, these drivers don't perform as well as expected and they quickly disappear from the grid. Things are no different in 2023, with Williams gaining increasing pressure from within the Formula One community to drop their driver, Logan Sargeant, after numerous disappointing performances, most recently in Japan and throughout the course of the season. And, with his seat being the only one that's not yet locked into a contract, will we potentially be seeing someone else step into his shoes for 2024?
It's no secret that Sargeant has had it tough in 2023, especially as he's racing alongside the more experienced and highly acclaimed, Alex Albon. And, although his car is not up to standards compared to some of the other teams, it's still not an ideal excuse for his numerous crashes and clashes, and lack of points on the board. However, as easy as it is to criticise the young American driver, we sometimes seem to forget that he is just a rookie, in his first season of Formula One. But rookie or not, as someone who tops the 2023 list of highest cost of damage accumulated (to the car), is it really worth the hassle for the Williams team if they continued with Sargeant into 2024?
Despite this, there are reasons as to why Williams may want Sargeant for next season, with the first and foremost being money. With the reported millions that the American brings, they can continue to develop the car with the resources that they desire. However, one must ask, is this the case with all those crashes? But then again, there's the fact that he's only a rookie and Williams may feel like he needs more time to grow as a Formula One driver. At the end of the day, they're the only ones who can decide where their future stands.
As fans of the sport, from an outsider POV, it's easy to say that Sargeant may not have a future in F1 and even the driver, himself, has recognised that he needs to improve to have any hope in saving his F1 career. And, with only six races of the season remaining, time is slowly but surely running out.
So, if Sargeant was to go, who would replace him? If rumours are to be believed, five other drivers are currently in the running - Liam Lawson, Mick Schumacher, Felipe Drugovich, Frederik Vesti and, quite surprisingly - Sauber protegee; Theo Pourchaire. And, with all five of these drivers making their mark in motorsport, one way or another; Williams would seemingly have no shortage of talent with any of these drivers lined up against Albon.
That leaves us with the question - "What should Williams do?"
It's a tough one to answer. But, if Sargeant doesn't improve during the remaining races of the season, he could very well be shown the door, especially with the talent lining up ready to pounce into his seat. He seems to have shown that he doesn't cope well under the pressures of Formula One. Could the pressure of losing his seat add to this, or will it improve his performance? Only time will tell.
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