Vowles: No plans for Williams to give Antonelli early F1 debut

Williams team boss James Vowles says he has no plans to offer Mercedes junior Andrea Kimi Antonelli a race opportunity with the British outfit in the second half of the 2024 F1 season.

On Monday, Williams provided long-awaited clarity on its 2025 driver line-up, confirming that outgoing Ferrari driver Carlos Sainz will race alongside Alex Albon from 2025.

The news means that Logan Sargeant’s two-year spell in Formula 1 will likely come to an end. However, Vowles has suggested that the young American could be replaced before the end of the current campaign.

While acknowledging Sargeant's struggles, Vowles emphasized the need for the 23-year-old to continue to earn his seat with the team.

“I think what I’ve said before is this: earn your place. And in Silverstone and Budapest, he earned his place,” Vowles said ahead of last weekend’s Belgian Grand Prix, quote by formu1a.uno.

“This weekend I need him to do more in the race weekend, but I’m not going to make a decision from one race to the next.

“What I don’t want is to sit here and say Logan absolutely has a place nailed forever in this situation. Earn it, as I have to earn my job, as Alex has to earn his job at the same time.”

• Read also: Williams seals multi-year deal with Carlos Sainz!

The former Mercedes strategist still enjoys a close relationship with his former team and with Toto Wolff.

The prospect therefore of Antonelli being offered racing mileage with Williams ahead of the Italian’s likely promotion to a race seat with the Brackley squad seems conceivable.

But while Vowles reserves the right to reconsider his options if Sargeant doesn't deliver, the Williams boss made clear that he would only replace the American with a more experienced driver, not a teenage prodigy such as Antonelli.

“Toto isn’t pushing him towards me,” he said. “And my perspective, as I said before, is I’d much rather give Logan every opportunity to succeed, and be an ongoing professional racing driver.

“Where I’m balancing, and the reason why I said not an absolute yes to [him staying], is when we make this car faster, and we will make it faster, I have a responsibility to finish as high up in the championship as possible.

“And if he delivers, brilliant. If he doesn’t, then I need to reconsider my options.”

On the topic of Antonelli, Vowles did acknowledge the Prema charger’s impressive display in Saturday’s wet Formula 2 race at Spa, and in particular his audacious overtaking move into Eau Rouge on Williams junior Franco Colapinto.

“I’ll talk to you about something that’s very private, but I hope Toto doesn’t mind,” said Vowles.

“We were messaging yesterday during the F2 race. And for me, what Kimi did is bloody impressive. It was against Colapinto, our own driver here.

“He went up the inside, and he didn’t lift. And for all of you that have at least been in a racing car, you know how tough that move was.

“That in the wet is not just brave, that takes a hell of a lot of skill. And he had snaps at the top of Eau Rouge. That’s impressive.

“He’s a good kid – but he’s 17. And answering your question, I’ll be proud of whatever he achieves, because I was part of his journey all the way up until the last few years.

“But I’m not sure that’s going to overlap with Williams.”

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