Williams Racing team principal James Vowles will be well aware that Logan Sargeant is underperforming right now.
The 23-year-old American was the final driver on the grid in 2023 to be offered a contract extension and after five races, he hasn’t done an awful lot to prove that he warranted an additional year on the grid.
Commentator David Croft was speaking on the Sky Sports F1 Podcast and addressed one driver he believes is in talks with Williams over potentially replacing him.
Out of the 10 available seats the bottom five teams have to fill next year, only one is already occupied.
After their tough start to the season, Williams will be delighted that Alex Albon is tied down until the end of 2025.
He’s been brilliant since arriving after his spell at Red Bull but has only managed a couple of 11-place finishes this year.
Meanwhile, Logan Sargeant has the ignominy of currently being in 21 place in the Drivers’ Championship despite there only being 20 cars due to Oliver Bearman’s cameo in Saudi Arabia.
He looks destined to leave Williams and David Croft believes that one-time race winner Pierre Gasly is having negotiations with the team.
The French driver has had a very tough time at Alpine this season and judging by the team’s actions in China, he may be the man needing to find a new seat if Bruno Famin decides to only retain one driver for 2025.
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David Croft thinks Pierre Gasly might be in negotiations with Williams
Heading to Shanghai, Alpine had one set of upgrades available for their overweight car and handed them to Esteban Ocon.
While they couldn’t score their first point of the season, the upgrades did have an impact.
While Gasly out-qualified Ocon for the Sprint Race, they ended up swapping places during Saturday’s event before both drivers reached Q2 for the first time for the Grand Prix.
Ocon led the way on Sunday and was only one position away from securing a precious top-ten finish.
If Alpine are giving Ocon their upgrades first, then that might suggest to Gasly that he needs to find a new seat to continue progressing.
David Croft believes that Gasly might already be working on that and Williams may be his next destination.
While Williams aren’t pulling up any trees this year, James Vowles has admitted that this season is always going to be difficult in order to put them in a stronger position in the future
READ MORE: Everything you need to know about Williams Racing from team principal to Mercedes relationship
Writing appears to be on the wall for Logan Sargeant at Williams
Speaking about the driver’s market, Croft said: “Where do Zhou [Guanyu] go? Well, he could go to Alpine and remember he was a Renault academy driver so he could go back into that stable again.
“But then [Esteban] Ocon or [Pierre] Gasly or both are going to have to leave Alpine.
“Now, Gasly might find himself at Williams and I’m sure that he’s been having negotiations with Williams to drive alongside Alex Albon. That does free up a space.
“But, they’ve also got Jack Doohan waiting in the wings who’s already very much acclimatised within that team.”
Gasly might not be the only driver in negotiations with Williams as Croft suggests.
Esteban Ocon might also be considering his options and a move to the British team may appeal if they take further steps forward than his current French outfit.
Then there’s Mercedes youngster Andrea Kimi Antonelli who might be parachuted into the team before the end of 2024 if Sargeant continues to struggle.
Whatever happens, Sargeant no longer looks at the front of the queue to retain his seat next year.
The post ‘I’m sure’: David Croft thinks 1-time race winner has been ‘having negotiations’ with Williams over 2025 seat appeared first on F1 Oversteer.
