Alex Albon suffered a big crash during FP1 in Melbourne, which caused heavy damage to his chassis. Unfortunately, the team does not have a spare chassis with them, which could force them to field just one car in the Australian Grand Prix. Auto Motor und Sport has confirmed that the Grove-based team will have to field just one car for the rest of the weekend in Melbourne. Now, Logan Sargeant could end up being the driver who gets sidelined, even though he wasn’t at fault.
Albon is the more experienced driver, and almost single-handedly carried Williams to a P7 finish in 2023. Sargeant, meanwhile, struggled throughout and crashed multiple times, adding to Williams’ repair bills. This is now being taken into account as rumors of Sargeant being sacrificed for Albon’s mistakes get stronger.
Williams may think Albon is the more dependable driver, but a huge portion of the F1 community doesn’t want the Thai-British driver to race. As the #23 driver’s car won’t be able to complete repairs at the track, as AMuS reported, James Vowles and Co. have a tough call to make between its drivers.
| Williams will only drive with one car for the rest of the weekend.
A repair of Albon’s car at the track is not possible.
It is not clear yet who will drive for the team.#F1 #AustralianGP
— Fastest Pitstop (@FastestPitStop) March 22, 2024
Journalist Tobi Gruner reported that Williams will make a decision on the same soon. Nothing has been confirmed as of yet. Vowles has mentioned that they are considering all options. Their team will be to do damage control and maximize what they can get out of this Grand Prix.
Albon has damaged the chassis of his Williams quite badly in FP1. Williams does not have a spare chassis at the track. If it can’t be repaired over night the team has to decide who will get the only car left for the race. Engine and gearbox also damaged.#AMuS #AustralianGP #F1
— Tobi Grüner (@tgruener) March 22, 2024
But the lack of an available chassis in Melbourne has certainly made their weekend incredibly difficult.
Reaction to Logan Sargeant being potentially sacrificed
In addition to the chassis damage, Williams will also have to change Albon’s engine and gearbox. The repair bills will certainly be high, but before that comes into question, their Australian GP weekend remains in danger.
Huge intake of breath at Williams – the team doesn’t have a spare chassis, so is still assessing Albon’s car, and Sargeant has just been off too! Only into the gravel #F1 #AustralianGP
— Chris Medland (@ChrisMedlandF1) March 22, 2024
The majority of the fanbase on X (formerly Twitter) seems to agree that Albon should be the sidelined driver. Some are also baffled at the fact that Williams traveled to a street circuit without a spare chassis.
Why don’t they have a spare one there given the nature of the track? Baffling.
— jon winter (@jonb4g) March 22, 2024
Albert Park in Melbourne has seen several incidents over the last few years, including last year’s chaos. Williams’ lack of preparedness could end up hurting them the most, as a difficult decision awaits them. On one hand, they have Albon who is more experienced and has proven to be the better driver over the last year and a half.
I don’t think there’s anything to decide there. We all saw who crashed their car. That’s the one to stay out
— Elias (@elias_ochako) March 22, 2024
On the other hand, lies Sargeant, who didn’t make any mistake. But, has a relatively inferior CV and experience to boast of.
