Another Williams protégé replaces Zak O'Sullivan at ART Grand Prix

After announcing with a heavy heart that he would not be able to continue his season for budgetary reasons, Zak O'Sullivan has been replaced within the French team by another talent from the Williams nursery.

Published on 11/09/2024 à 09:55

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Another Williams protégé replaces Zak O'Sullivan at ART Grand Prix

Luke Browning, new ART Grand Prix driver in Formula 2. © Florent Gooden / DPPI

A pilot Williams can hide another. Twenty-four hours after the announcement of the end of Zak O'Sullivan's season in Formula 2, for financial reasons, ART Grand Prix announced on Tuesday evening that Luke Browning was taking over his compatriot's seat for the remainder of the season. Winner of the main race in Monaco and the sprint at Spa-Francorchamps, O'Sullivan was 13th in the championship, after finishing runner-up in F3 in 2023.

“First of all, I would like to thank ART GP and Williams Racing for all the support they have given me, wrote the protégé of the British team. This year we have had some incredible moments, with multiple victories and a highlight, the victory in the Monaco race. Unfortunately, in our sport there are more factors at play than just the stopwatch. The simple question comes down to funding, I will not be able to finish this F2 season with ART GP.

Driver announcement 📣 @LukeBrown1ng join ART Grand Prix in car number 2 in @ Formula2 until the end of the season 🤝🏼🔥#F2 pic.twitter.com/PFAwldkmrp

- ART Grand Prix (@ARTGP) September 10, 2024

ART Grand Prix has pulled off a nice coup, in these circumstances, with the signing of Luke Browning. Winner of the Macau Grand Prix last autumn, the 22-year-old Briton has had a great season in Formula 3, leading the championship for a good part of the year and fighting for the title until the final race of the season at Monza. The Englishman ultimately finished 3rd in the championship and will make his Formula 2 debut in Baku this weekend, before taking part in the Losail and Abu Dhabi rounds.

This will undoubtedly be the ideal opportunity to test the British talent with a view to a potential signing for 2024 for the French structure led by Sebastien Philippe. This replacement still raises questions on the Williams side, especially given the content of O'Sullivan's comments, who highlighted financial concerns to justify the end of his program. The Grove team is one of the rare teams financially involved in the payment of the seasons of its protégés. From this point of view, it is difficult not to see the replacement of Zak O'Sullivan as a decision that is at least partially sporting.

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