Will Buxton shares the moment that left him questioning why Williams signed Logan Sargeant for 2024

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Williams entered the summer break without a completed driver line-up for 2025, but that changed extremely quickly.

Just over 24 hours after the end of the Belgian Grand Prix, it was announced that after months of chasing the Spaniard, Carlos Sainz would join the team from Ferrari.

Alongside Alex Albon, it’s seen as a huge coup that Williams have managed to pair a race-winning driver with arguably one of the midfield’s best talents for next season.

Considering Williams have only managed two points-scoring finishes this year, it highlights the project James Vowles is leading that both Sainz and Albon see the team as the best place to further their Formula 1 careers.

While this is good news for the Grove-based outfit, it spells the end of Logan Sargeant’s time in Formula 1, at least for now.

Speaking on Formula 1’s official YouTube channel, journalists Will Buxton and Lawrence Barretto and former F1 driver Jolyon Palmer were discussing some of the biggest moments of the 2024 season so far.

They reviewed the Australian Grand Prix – a race Sargeant infamously didn’t take part in after handing his chassis over to his teammate.

It appeared to be the turning point for the young American and left Buxton wondering why Williams handed him another contract at the end of last season.

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Will Buxton questions why Logan Sargeant was handed 2024 Williams contract

Talking about the chassis swap in Melbourne, Barretto said: “This was probably peak difficult times for Logan Sargeant in his career when he had to effectively give up – or his own race car was taken away from him – for the good of the team really.

“They believed that Alex had the better chance of scoring points, really tough on Logan.

“Williams were in such a difficult situation, they didn’t have a spare chassis, they lacked parts because of production issues as a result of changing processes over the winter.

“It was tough for Logan and really set the tone for what maybe Williams thought of him going forward, super unlucky.

“I think it’s really harsh on Logan, I think it was really harsh on Williams the situation they were in.”

Buxton then added: “It begged the question, why did they sign him again in the first place?

“What was the point in signing this kid if we don’t actually have the faith that he’s going to bring home the points when you need him to?

“I thought it was just messy all around.”

Palmer went on to say that there was ‘nothing positive’ about the decision and it ‘completely destroyed’ Sargeant’s morale.

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Logan Sargeant is not guaranteed a Williams seat until the end of 2024

Sargeant is the only non-Sauber driver this season to fail to score a point going into the summer break.

Although Albon has only managed to break into the top ten at Monaco and Silverstone, he’s been much more competitive than his teammate this season.

Sargeant may not have had exactly the same car as Albon this year which wouldn’t have helped matters, but there’s a reason why the Thai driver is already being preferred.

Vowles has shared the ‘blunt truth’ about whether Sargeant will see out the rest of the season and it all comes down to how well he performs in the upcoming races.

There are plenty of drivers desperate for their chance in F1, including the likes of Franco Colapinto and Zak O’Sullivan in the Williams Academy.

Mercedes may also see an opportunity for Kimi Antonelli to get up to speed in F1 before he almost certainly takes Lewis Hamilton’s next season.