Williams and Alex Albon’s weekend went off to a horrible start in Australia after the latter crashed out of FP1. To make matters worse, his chassis seems to be completely damaged and now, reports suggest that he could miss out on the race altogether, as Williams will be left with just one car.
On X, journalist Chris Medland revealed that Williams is assessing the damage on Albon’s car. It isn’t an overnight job and will certainly be costly. The issue lies in the fact that the British outfit doesn’t have an extra chassis in Melbourne. If the chassis cannot be recovered (which it most certainly won’t), Williams will have just one car.
Chances are, Williams might be in favor of having Albon drive the car despite him being responsible for the crash. The Thai driver is the more experienced driver, and many consider him to be more dependable. Sargeant will be missing out on the Australian GP in that case, but for Williams, it would be a no-brainer to sideline him in this case.
The lack of a spare chassis is a surprise, and if Albon’s is damaged to the point that it can’t be repaired overnight then there will be just one Williams for the rest of the weekend. Big ‘if’ at this stage though #F1 #AustralianGP
— Chris Medland (@ChrisMedlandF1) March 22, 2024
Sargeant crashed several times in 2023 and was responsible for over $2.7 million in repair costs for Williams last year. Additionally, in FP2, Sargeant himself briefly spun out into the gravel. Thankfully, he didn’t damage the car.
Williams haven’t announced anything yet, but a decision regarding Albon’s weekend is imminent.
Social media reacts to Alex Albon potentially being ruled out
As soon as Medland broke the news of Williams not carrying a spare chassis, fans of F1 took to X to share their reactions. Should Williams not be able to repair the car, some fans think Sargeant should be the one to represent them, given he didn’t do anything wrong.
If Williams need a car I can offer my Ford. It’s blue so will blend in perfectly.
— Dan (@RannyDic) March 22, 2024
It would be wrong to take Sargeant’s car and give it to Albon. Albon is the one who smashed his car to bits.
— Marc Johnson (@MarcJoh46031196) March 22, 2024
Williams might have to decide who’ll race for them this Sunday if they can’t repair Albon’s car overnight
The car has been damaged very badly in that FP1 crash including the engine and gearbox, the team doesn’t have a spare chassis either.
[ #AMuS @tgruener ]#F1 #AustralianGP— Desi Racing Co. (@DesiRacingco) March 22, 2024
Some fans referred to Williams not updating their excel sheet for the required components.
the excel is not updated? https://t.co/4JRntJ7nqv
— niki | (@thefaultyy) March 22, 2024
Shit happens… https://t.co/UEpawRa9Ff pic.twitter.com/ZHxZO2uasG
— MultiViewer (@f1multiviewer) March 22, 2024
Having finished P7 in last year’s constructors’ championship, Williams hoped to improve their performance in 2024. However, they have been off to a terrible start this season, failing to score any points thus far.
Adding insult to injury, they now face the prospect of sporting just one car on the grid by way of their own undoing.
