Williams axes Sargeant, debutant Colapinto to see out season

Sargeant has struggled for performance throughout his time in Formula 1 and last month Williams signed Carlos Sainz as his replacement for 2025.

Williams gave no guarantees that Sargeant would see out the rest of 2024 and boss James Vowles acted after the American’s sizeable accident during practice for the Dutch Grand Prix.

An advance to Liam Lawson met an impasse over Red Bull’s desire to be able to call the New Zealander back at any time, and Vowles has instead turned to Williams’ academy.

Colapinto tested for Williams at last year’s end-of-season young driver gathering, and also drove this year’s FW46 during practice for the British Grand Prix.

“To replace a driver mid-season is not a decision we have taken lightly, but we believe this gives Williams the best chance to compete for points over the remainder of the season,” Vowles said.

“We have just brought a large upgrade to the car and need to maximise every points-scoring opportunity in a remarkably tight midfield battle.

“We also believe in investing in our young drivers in the Williams Racing Driver Academy, and Franco is getting a fantastic opportunity to demonstrate what he is capable of across the final nine rounds of the season.

“This is undoubtedly incredibly tough on Logan, who has given his all throughout his time with Williams, and we want to thank him for all his hard work and positive attitude.

“Logan remains a talented driver and we will support him to continue his racing career for the future.

“I know that Franco has great speed and huge potential, and we look forward to seeing what he can do in Formula 1.”

Colapinto, 21, will be Argentina’s first Formula 1 racer since Gaston Mazzacane in 2001.

“It is an honour to be making my Formula 1 debut with Williams – this is what dreams are made of,” Colapinto said.

“The team has such amazing history and a mission to get back to the front which I can’t wait to be part of.

“Coming into F1 mid-season will be an enormous learning curve but I am up for the challenge, and I’m fully focused on working as hard as I can with Alex and the team to make it a success.”