The 2024 Formula 1 driver’s market is likely to be one of the most disruptive the sport has seen in a very long time.
Eight out of the ten teams on the grid could change one or both of their drivers with 13 stars out of contract at the end of the season.
Speaking on The Race Podcast, journalist Glenn Freeman has suggested that one driver is already unlikely to earn a renewal for 2025.
Speculation is rife up and down the grid with Red Bull potentially considering a replacement for Sergio Perez and also potentially preparing to lose three-time champion Max Verstappen.
The likes of Alpine and Haas have two drivers out of contract in nine months, while the seat being vacated by Lewis Hamilton is currently being eyed by several drivers.
However, there are a few racers who might just settle for remaining on the grid next year.
Daniel Ricciardo is under pressure, but Freeman believes it might take a miracle for Logan Sargeant to retain his Williams seat.
The 23-year-old didn’t set either of the first two races alight before suffering the ignominy of having to give up his car in Australia.
Logan Sargeant needs a miracle to retain his Williams seat
At the end of his rookie season, Logan Sargeant was still none the wiser as to whether he would still be on the grid this year.
Several drivers were linked with replacing the American but team principal James Vowles put his faith in the 23-year-old once again.
He admitted that Sargeant needed to be the ‘surprise of the season’ this year, but that’s been far from the case.
In Bahrain, he suffered a technical issue but was never running in the points, while he was one of many drivers stuck in the Kevin Magnussen train.
Alex Albon’s huge crash in Melbourne forced Vowles into a tough decision that saw Sargeant give up his chassis for his more experienced teammate.
That lack of faith Williams showed in Sargeant is a key reason why it would take a miracle for him to retain his seat.
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Time running out for Logan Sargeant to prove F1 credentials
Speaking about the American’s start to the season, Freeman said: “This was a big deal at the time as we were covering it, this is unprecedented in the modern era, someone having to give up their car in-weekend, especially when it’s for your teammate when your teammate who shunted.
“So, the reason that they didn’t have a car is self-inflicted.
“It feels like a big deal at the time, I don’t think it’s going to feel like a big deal in the long run.
“I don’t think this is something that we’re going to be talking about over and over again this year, ‘Ah, but when you think back to Australia can you believe they did that driver switch?’
“I think it probably tells us that Logan Sargeant is going to lose his seat at the end of this year, but I think we knew that anyway barring a miracle.
“There had to be some big turnaround and I haven’t seen much evidence yet that he’s taken a step from last year.
“I don’t think this is going to be a huge moment in the history of the recovery of Williams.”
Who could Williams replace Logan Sargeant with?
Despite being praised for his work behind the scenes in Australia, Sargeant still needs a miracle to save his Williams seat.
He looks set to return to the grid in Japan after Williams repaired Albon’s chassis, but a spare still won’t be available.
That might be a worry for Sargeant who had a huge crash at Suzuka last year in qualifying.
If the 23-year-old is let go, then Williams could look to repeat the signing of George Russell by bringing in Andrea Kimi Antonelli from Mercedes’s academy.
Academy driver Luke Browning has admitted he would love the chance, but considering he’s in Formula 3 right now, his F2 rivals Zak O’Sullivan and Franco Colapinto are going to be above him in the pecking order.
The post ‘Barring a miracle’: Journalist believes 23-year-old driver is almost certainly going to lose his seat in 2025 appeared first on F1 Oversteer.