Williams has decided to make a bold move by bringing in Franco Colapinto to replace Logan Sargeant for the rest of the 2024 F1 season. If you’ve been following the season, you know Sargeant has had a rough time keeping up with his teammate Alex Albon, and it looks like the team has finally run out of patience.
Colapinto’s Big Break
Colapinto, just 21 years old, has been part of Williams’ driver academy since last year. He got his first taste of driving the FW46 during the British Grand Prix’s practice session and even did some testing for the team at Yas Marina last season. This weekend, though, things are getting real for Colapinto as he steps into the big leagues, making his F1 debut at the Italian Grand Prix.
Colapinto is fully aware of the challenge ahead. Starting your F1 career mid-season isn’t exactly a walk in the park. However, he’s eager to tackle this learning curve and work closely with Albon and the rest of the team to make his mark. He’s even giving up his seat in the MP Motorsport Formula 2 team at Monza to seize this opportunity.
Colapinto has been climbing the ranks since he won the Spanish Formula 4 championship back in 2019. After finishing fourth in Formula 3, he made his way into Formula 2, where he’s been showing some serious promise. His only win this season came in a reverse-grid race at Imola, but he’s also grabbed a couple of second-place finishes and is currently sitting sixth in the championship standings, making him one of the top rookies.
Sargeant’s Departure and Team’s Decision
On the flip side, Sargeant’s struggles have been hard to ignore, especially after his crash during practice at the Dutch Grand Prix last weekend. The timing couldn’t have been worse, as the team had just rolled out a significant upgrade to their cars. Sargeant had already been on thin ice after it was announced that Carlos Sainz Jr. would replace him next year, and this latest incident seemed to be the final straw.
Williams’ team principal, James Vowles, acknowledged that this was a tough decision but felt it was necessary to give the team the best shot at scoring points in a highly competitive midfield. While this change is undoubtedly tough for Sargeant, Vowles emphasized that the team remains supportive of his future endeavors. As for Colapinto, Williams is eager to see how he’ll perform in these final nine races, confident that he has the speed and potential to make an impact.
