Fort Lauderdale’s Logan Sargeant still has his F1 seat — for now, Williams head says
In Formula 1 rumor mill math, the single point Fort Lauderdale’s Logan Sargeant has scored for Williams during the past two years plus the singular talent of 17-year-old Formula 2 driver Andrea Kimi Antonelli equals Antonelli in Sargeant’s seat.
While the rumor mill has Sargeant out and Antonelli in sometime between Sunday’s checkered flag and next season, Williams Team Principal James Vowles said “there’s nothing on the radar” for an immediate change.
Vowles also said of Antonelli, “just 20 months ago, he was in Formula 4. That’s a large, large jump” and he didn’t know where Antonelli was now as a driver. Vowles also claimed ignorance beyond media reports of Antonelli’s recent test runs in Mercedes cars.
At the end of the 2023 season, Vowles made clear Sargeant must be more competitive with teammate Alex Albon.
“He had to be at the point where he was not sitting a tenth [of a second] behind him, but challenging him, outqualifying him and outracing him, fundamentally,” Vowles said. “We’re still on that journey.”
In the Friday practice, Sargeant’s best lap 1:29.891 was 18th of the 20 drivers and almost a half second off Albon’s best lap. Sargeant was faster in the Friday afternoon Formula 1 Sprint qualifying, 1:29.551 to Albon’s 1:29.858, but they were 19th and 20th, dropped after qualifying’s first round.
“What Logan has as a challenge fundamentally in front of him is enormous,” he continued. “We can’t underrate where Alex is as a driver. He was underrated before and he’s a brilliant, brilliant driver. In terms of Logan, what I’ve been asking of him is despite the pressures of the world — the pressures we’ve created, the pressures I’ve created, the pressures all of you have created — you need to put all that behind you and make sure you’re out there fighting and outqualifying Alex and pushing the team forward.”
Saturday’s Schedule
9 a.m.: Parking lots open
READ MORE: Street closures, parking and shuttles for the Miami Grand Prix
10:25 a.m.: F1 Academy qualifying
Noon: The Formula 1 Sprint race, 19 laps or 30 minutes.
12:55 p.m.: Porsche Carrera Cup qualifying
2:05 p.m.: F1 Academy, First Race
2:50 p.m.: Formula 1 Pirelli Hot Laps
4 p.m.: Formula 1 Crypto.com Miami Grand Prix qualifying.
5:50 p.m.: Porsche Carrera Cup, First Race.
