MOGYORÓD, HUNGARY — Nearing the halfway point in his sophomore Formula One season in Hungary, Logan Sargeant was in a reflective mood.
After close to 18 months on the grid, how had his perception of F1 changed? Upon realizing the dream he’d committed the majority of his life to achieve, what was different when living it?
“I’ve quickly realized that no one knows what truly goes on inside a team other than the people that are in it,” Sargeant said. “Life’s not always fair. But it is what it is.”
Sargeant’s cryptic answer alluded to the difficulty of understanding how good a job that a driver is doing when racing in F1, at a time he is trying to impress for the future, with his outlook at Williams looking bleak.
The team is known to be chasing Carlos Sainz as its top priority to replace Sargeant for 2025, but Williams is also “continually evaluating” the American’s performance to see if a mid-2024 change is required, according to team principal James Vowles. Sargeant is yet to score a point this year and continues to lag behind teammate Alex Albon for pace. “What we’ve said to Logan is it’s a meritocracy,” Vowles said at Silverstone. “You have to make sure you earn your place in the sport continuously.”
On a personal level, Sargeant thinks he has been driving well, even if it has gone unnoticed publicly. “I’ve been in the rhythm for a long time now,” he said. “I just didn’t have the chance to show it.”
And he was clear in his belief that no matter how he performs in a race, good or bad, he’ll still face criticism. “I’m at a point where I don’t care what people think. It’s impossible to please everyone. I show up, and I do my best to please myself.”
Sargeant delivered his best performance to date at Silverstone. (BENJAMIN CREMEL/AFP via Getty Images)
Sargeant didn’t say specifically what had made him feel that way, whether it was something he’d seen or read; merely that “when I do things well, it’s still negative.” He then noted that it could be why a lot of athletes are not so involved with their social media channels any more, himself included “for quite a while now.”
“It gives people a voice that have never experienced performing at this high of a level and how difficult it is,” Sargeant said. “It just is what it is.” Sargeant’s X account has not been updated since Jan. 16, but his Instagram is active, mainly consisting of team photos and occasional shots of him away from the track, playing golf or going fishing.
Sargeant acknowledged that he was maybe mixing up media versus social media for where that criticism originated. And his feeling is one that is shared by many of his peers. Last month, Mercedes driver George Russell opened up about his experiences with negativity on social media, and his belief that platforms needed better regulation to combat abuse.
“It’s quite a draining place,” Sargeant said. “I think when you’re doing things well, of course people want to drag you down.”
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He was coy when asked if there was greater skepticism toward him because he is the only American in what has, historically, been a European-centric sport. “It’s a very thin line question to answer,” Sargeant said, before taking a long pause. “I don’t think I can say what I really think. I’ll leave it at that.”
What will ultimately define Sargeant’s future — be it inside or, more probably, outside of F1 — is his performance on the track. He knows that.
Where Sargeant said things got “hazy” was the difference between performance and results; how a fine display on the race track may not be reflected in the final classification. And if it doesn’t translate into points and positions, it won’t matter in the championship. It also means outscoring, or at least getting close, to your teammate’s results. Sargeant is yet to outqualify Albon in 33 attempts as teammates, nor finish ahead of him in the 22 races in which they have both been classified.
Sargeant has been deprived of some chances to show what he can do this year. After Albon’s Australia practice crash left the team with only a single chassis due to a lack of spares, it was Sargeant, not Albon, who got benched.
Even on Sargeant’s stronger days, his performance has lagged behind that of teammate Albon. (ERWIN SCHERIAU/APA/AFP via Getty Images)
And it’s only since Austria at the end of June that Sargeant feels he’s been on equal footing, as the cars ran in different specifications up to then due to there only being a single set of upgrades, which went to Albon. At Silverstone a week later, Sargeant put in his best performance of the season to date, qualifying 12th and finishing 11th — albeit still behind Albon, who finished 20 seconds ahead in ninth, scoring two points.
Sargeant said he hadn’t received feedback from Williams off the back of Silverstone. But he did not feel it was something he needed, nor was it a change in tune compared to his rookie season. “You’re expected to perform at a certain level,” Sargeant said. “You don’t get a pat on the back every time you do a good job from within the team.”
The need for results makes the next two races important for Sargeant to prove his belief that he has made a step forward compared to his rookie season, about which he admitted he “couldn’t say I was doing a good job.” Running the same car specification as Albon should now give him the opportunity to better display the flashes of raw pace, and help cement his place on the radar for a seat somewhere next year.
As pleased as he may be with his performances, without the results and conversion into points, Sargeant’s position will always face scrutiny, particularly as Williams finds itself in the tight backfield battle with Alpine and Sauber. Now, seemingly free of the weight that criticism against him has carried, Sargeant needs to make the most of that opportunity and show potential suitors for 2025 just what he is capable of.
The reality of life in F1 may be tough to come to terms with, but Sargeant didn’t want to sound disappointed, aware of his privileged position.
“There’s nothing to be disappointed about,” he said. “I get to drive an F1 car. And not many people can say that.”
(Lead photo of Logan Sargeant: Rudy Carezzevoli/Getty Images)
