'Hardest Moment': Sargeant And Albon Respond To Williams' Controversial Call

Friday, 22 March 2024 at 12:30

Updated at Friday, 22 March 2024 at 19:59

Williams drivers Alex Albon and Logan Sargeant responded to their team's controversial call following FP2 ahead of the 2024 Australian Grand Prix.

Alex Albon's car sustained irreparable damage during his big crash in the FP1 session. FW46's chassis, gearbox, and power unit were apparently all damaged.

As a result, Williams ran only with one car during the FP2 session. The team principal, James Vowles, admitted after FP2 that his team didn't have spare chassis at Albert Park Circuit, and later on, the team published a statement that said the team would have to run only with one car this weekend.

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Shockingly, the statement also read that Albon would take over Logan Sargeant's car for the remainder of the weekend. The Thai driver responded:

"I have to be totally honest and say that no driver would want to give up his seat. I would never want anything like this to happen."

By replacing Sargeant for FP3, qualifying, and the race, Williams clearly showed who the team's number one driver is, and Albon acknowledged how hard it has to be for the American driver to take.

"Logan has always been a consummate professional and a team player from day one, and this won't be an easy one for him to take."

"At this point though, I cannot dwell on the situation and my only job now is to maximise our potential this weekend and work with the whole team to make sure we do the best job possible!"

The message statement from Williams quoted three people: Vowles, Albon, and Sargeant. Of all three, Sargeant's response was the shortest:

"This is the hardest moment I can remember in my career and it's absolutely not easy. I am however completely here for the team and will continue to contribute in any way that I can this weekend to maximise what we can do."