With Logan Sargeant continuously struggling to perform since making his F1 debut in 2023, there has been a lot of commotion around his future in the sport. Lately, reports suggest that Williams could let him go in favor of Kimi Antonelli ahead of the race in Imola. However, there is no guarantee of what will happen at Williams.
Will Buxton claimed that Williams was in the process of bringing Antonelli on board as early as Imola. Needing special dispensation in allowing a 17-year-old to race in F1, Buxton revealed that the team has already applied for the same. So, should Antonelli be allowed to race before August 25 (his 18th birthday), he will join Max Verstappen as the only driver below the age of 18 to drive in F1.
As reported this morning, as I understand it Williams had made this request with the intention of an Imola debut after Antonelli’s stunning Mercedes test. Williams told me they do not comment on driver contracts. https://t.co/LgcnV8wvWr
— Will Buxton (@wbuxtonofficial) May 3, 2024
However, Lawrence Barretto came up with a different update, having chatted with Williams’ team principal James Vowles. Per him, Antonelli won’t be driving for them in Imola, which is where F1 travels to after the Miami GP.
Not in a rush to decide anything, Vowles wants to sign a driver for 2025 and 2026.
Furthermore, Buxton clarified his earlier claims, having understood what the matter was. He thought that Williams wanted to replace Sargeant with Antonelli after seeing the latter’s test with Mercedes. However, Vowles doesn’t want to talk about driver contracts in public. He wants to do away with all Antonelli-related conversations until the Italian’s future becomes certain.
Driver swap doubtful within Williams according to James Vowles
A driver swap at Williams was rumored to be an ever-increasing possibility but James Vowles tried to put an end to such talks. RacingNews365 reports that an official dispensation has been requested to allow Antonelli to compete in F1. But there is no certainty that Williams applied for it.
James Vowles: “Just 20 months ago [Kimi Antonelli] was in an F4 car. That’s a large large step up into an F1 car in such a short space of time.”#MiamiGP #F1 pic.twitter.com/ZutzueixOM
— Motorsport.com (@Motorsport) May 3, 2024
Williams, a team languishing in the back of the grid has bigger issues to resolve at the moment. Vowles doesn’t want to spend his free time thinking about how he will replace his drivers. He said,
“I’ll give you my perspective on it. We have far bigger problems to solve than drivers at the moment.”
As for the conversation around Antonelli and Sargeant, Vowles insisted that the team’s driver lineup will be based on a system of meritocracy.
Williams has its own driver program, but the American team will evaluate the performances of all available candidates before making a decision. Nothing concretely suggests that Sargeant is on his way out of Williams. Vowles, however, emphasized on the need for him to get closer to Albon.
