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Why Colapinto's arrival at Williams raises eyebrows
- Ludo van Denderen
When Logan Sargeant crashed his Williams for the umpteenth time at Zandvoort last weekend, James Vowles seemed to have a moment of realisation. For months, the Brit had supported his driver; despite all the crashes, despite the lagging performance, despite the pressure from the media. This time there was no more excuses; Sargeant had had enough chances, so a logical time for a driver change. The fact that Vowles then chose Franco Colapinto did come as a huge surprise.
Mick Schumacher was eager and Mercedes would have been more than fine with the German test and reserve driver being loaned to Williams for the rest of the season. Alpine - the French team for which Schumacher junior competes in the World Endurance Championship - was secretly anticipating that Schumacher would be missing from the racing team next weekend at the Circuit of the Americas.
With Colapinto, is there a bigger chance for points?
But when the lights go out on Sunday for the six-hour endurance race in Austin, Schumacher will 'just' be one of the participants. Williams chose not to recruit the former Haas F1 driver as Sargeant's replacement, but someone who has yet to drive his first Grand Prix. Remarkable, especially when you listen to Vowles' motivation for sidelining Sargeant: "We believe this gives Williams the best chance to compete for points over the remainder of the season."
Franco Colapinto is a talented driver, for sure. But putting him in the car involves more risk than opting for Schumacher or Liam Lawson - Red Bull Racing's reserve driver who was also in the picture; guys who have been at the start of a Grand Prix several times and scored points. With a rookie, damage is almost a certainty and, besides, no one can expect Colapinto to be at the level of teammate Alex Albon right away. So is Colapinto the ideal upgrade after Sargeant?
No long-term future at Williams
Should Colapinto have been in the picture to become one of the regular drivers at Williams next season, the choice would have been more justifiable. In that case, Colapinto could have spent the next nine races getting used to Formula 1, and then be ready for 2025. Colapinto will not get a seat at Williams in 2025, just as he will not in 2026. Williams has Albon and Carlos Sainz under contract for the coming years, so there will be no place for Colapinto at the British team for quite some time.
The exact reasons for Colapinto's choice are a matter of conjecture until James Vowles will probably reveal further details at Monza. In any case, it is known that Colapinto enjoyed great popularity in his native country and throughout South America. Sponsors were lining up to bring him to Formula 1, to finally have another successor to legendary Argentine drivers like Carlos Reutemann and, of course, Juan Manuel Fangio. Perhaps a nice financial contribution was the final push for Williams to put the 21-year-old in the car.
For Colapinto, in any case, it is an opportunity out of a lifetime. He has nothing to lose and if he manages to convince in the coming months, who knows what might be in store for him elsewhere on the F1 grid. And Logan Sargeant? His role in Formula 1 is definitely over. Expect him in IndyCar next season, where he may just surprise. More drivers who failed to succeed in Formula 1 have done so in the past.
This article has been written in collaboration with Matt Gretton
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