Does Logan Sargeant Deserve Another Shot At Williams?

Formula 1 is risky business. We all know that. We know the ups and downs and the then, the serious downsides to the sport. We know that it can be unsparing to a minute mistake made in the slightest or faintest of manners only for the driver to spin out of control and throw it all away. At times, when victory was in sight.

But what we don’t always appreciate is that F1 can also reward those blessed with a certain amount of luck. That’s exactly what is the public’s view in measuring the worth of some drivers at the very least on the current F1 grid.

But, first up some context.

In no disrespect to Daniel Ricciardo, one of the sport’s most effervescent and supremely talented drivers, truth is that the F1 purist would know that today a Liam Lawson can also get the job done that Daniel Ricciardo is expected to do at AlphaTauri.

And guess what?

The young 21-year-old Kiwi from Hastings already proved that in just his third ever F1 race in scoring points and that too, at the physically challenging and daunting Singapore Grand Prix (where Lawson bagged a P9).

But speaking of luck, there are two drivers in particular, among the others, who seemed slightly fortunate to be on the grid when there are so many out there who could too deserve a drive. One of them is Lance Stroll and the other is Logan Sargeant.

The talented Williams driver who, as a matter of fact, has just turned 23, is dubbed slightly fortunate by any globetrotting F1 fans for being part of the sport when several, such as a Lawson, Pourchaire, even Giovinazzi, the latter who raced until 2021, are around and can be brought on the grid.

Logan Sargeant at COTA 2023

But then didn’t Logan Sargeant open his account in his debut F1 season and that too, rather interestingly amid the cheery support of several American racing fans at the COTA in Texas?

Lest it is forgotten, it was Logan Sargeant who scored a valiant P10 at Austin this year to open his F1 account. A big moment albeit thanks to that solitary world championship point. Surely, the car he had wasn’t exactly trashy especially given how Alex Albon was able to drive the wheels off that Williams as seen at races like Canada (P7).

But then, Logan Sargeant, who’s had more critics on his shoulders than actual fans for his feats in 2023 (rather the lack of it), has found some nice support from one of the most sought after and valuable voices of Formula 1: David Croft.

Here’s what Crofty aka David Croft had to say in Logan Sargeant’s defence:

“A lot of the criticism is he hasn’t even out-qualified his teammate. ‘Oh, he can’t even beat his teammate in qualifying’. It’s true. But the last person to go through a whole season and not beat his teammate in qualifying was Alex Albon. Should we have written Albon off right at that moment? Well, with the benefit of hindsight, no we shouldn’t because he’s turned into a fine driver.”

Surely, when it’s Formula 1, there’ll be criticism. Surely, there’ll be those who at the comfort of their own space and their own schedule wax lyrical all day; only the drivers tasked with the enormity of pressure to get going amid extreme weather and on-track challenges can understand just how hard it is.

Quite frankly, if Williams have reposed faith in their young driver, the only American that there is in the sport at the moment, then that decision may have come at the back of some deep thinking.

Maybe there’s more to Logan Sargeant than his detractors can ever see. Maybe he merits another season at the very least, which is precisely what he’s earned.

Maybe his best days are ahead of him. But real action begins with the precursor to the F1 2024 world championship: the pre-season-testing at Spain in 2024.

Logan Sargeant mustn’t and likely will not take it any lightly. For it could well impact his entire career. What do you reckon?