Vowles on Sargeant withdrawal: 'It's one of the hardest decisions I've made' at Williams

This is an extremely rare case, if not unique, in the history of Formula 1 modern. This Friday, after Alexander Albon's accident during Free Practice 1, Williams made the decision to sacrifice Logan Sargeant's weekend by "offering" the American's car to the Thai, a decision which can be explained by the absence of a replacement chassis for the British team. A decision that has (and will) cause a lot of talk. In order to put out the fire – at least, to contain it – James Vowles explained himself at length in a video posted on social networks.

“It’s one of the hardest decisions I’ve made.”

James reflects on Friday at the #AusGP. pic.twitter.com/nubSpIhiIn

- Williams Racing (@WilliamsRacing) March 22, 2024

“We had high hopes when we arrived in Melbourne, starts the British leader. Last year we had a competitive package but we didn't convert that into points. This year we know we have a balanced package and good foundations to work on. Indeed, from the first laps of FP1, we seem to be heading towards a positive situation, with our two cars capable of positioning themselves around the Top 10. By the time we put on the soft tires for Alex [Albon] for his fast lap, he hit the curb at turn 6, landed badly and it threw him into the wall. The gearbox is split in two, the power unit has significant damage and the chassis has been damaged beyond repair at the front right.

“My main concern is that Alex is OK after this accident. It was a big impact (…) and in his circumstances, the health of the driver is the priority, and he is fine. However, and this is the downside, we don't have any spare chassis with us here in Melbourne. This is the result of the work we did this winter, where we pushed our organization to the absolute limit. »

Vowles doesn't want to relive this situation at Williams again

“The result is that we are very behind in production, and the backup chassis has been delayed. No team plans to come to a race without a spare chassis, it's risky. At best, the situation is just uncomfortable. In the worst case scenario, one of the two cars cannot race, and this is the situation we are experiencing today. We need to make sure we never put ourselves in this situation again in the future. We're here to race and having only one car on Saturday and Sunday, that's just not what we're looking for. »

“I made the decision not to run Logan [Sergeant] this weekend and leave the chassis to Alex, who will represent Williams the rest of the weekend. This is one of the most difficult decisions I have had to make in this organization. The middle of the pack is so tight, that a point or two can make the difference at the end of the season between 10th and 6th place. The gap between the cars is measured in thousandths of a second. Although it pains me to see a driver who, through no fault of his own, will not race on Sunday, I have to prioritize the team above all else. »

“Logan has been great, he's there to support the team in this, he's obviously very hurt by this decision, but he's just as strong in that he knows that the team, above all else, is priority. What I can say is that the chassis will be back in the UK, as quickly as possible, and it will be repaired so that we can race in Japan again with two cars. »

ALSO READ > Opinion: Williams was wrong to sacrifice Sargeant for Albon