Logan Sargeant is chuffed to secure first point in challenging F1 US GP weekend, as Williams ended up with double.
The F1 US GP weekend didn’t started off well for Williams’ Sargeant as track limits and lack of pace plagued his run on Friday and even on Sunday. With the American racing for his future, any positive result against Alexander Albon is good for him.
The Sunday race turned out to be a good one eventually. Sargeant looked on pace all-through and wasn’t too far behind teammate Albon. The American managed to make some moves and positioned himself well in 12th to eventually gain from other’s misery.
The disqualification for both Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc ended up earning him his first F1 point in 10th. He became the first American driver to score since Michael Andretti after 30 years. The result comes at a time when he needs a confidence boost.
“It’s amazing to score my first point in F1 on home turf after the challenging weekend I’ve had,” said Sargeant. “I’m so proud of this team and myself for the hard work and progress we’ve been making this season. We worked hard overnight to find a direction with the car that was going to be positive, and we found that.
“We couldn’t change a lot as the car was under Parc Ferme, but we worked on the systems side using the tools on my steering wheel to help move the car in the right direction. The pace was so much better, and I was driving really well. I had a great start but was unfortunate to catch the sausage kerb in Turn 1 and went into anti-stall which cost me a couple of positions.
“That changed the race a little bit, but we fought back, and I gave it my all every lap. We made steps in the right direction that we can build on and move forward as we head to Mexico,” summed up Sargeant, as he was part of Williams’ double points with Albon in ninth. It is their first this year and first since 2021 Hungarian GP.
“I’m very happy for the team and especially Logan for scoring points,” said Albon who ended up ninth despite the time penalty. “We had our luck, but we were there to take it! My race felt a little compromised without any new Mediums, as we used them all yesterday in the Sprint. We also struggled with the Hards, forcing us to run our used Mediums.
“Nonetheless, to walk away with points is great for the team as we close out the remainder of the season,” summed up Albon. There was natural happiness for Williams too as they did not expect to score points, let own double, at the Circuit of the Americas.
“After Leclerc and Hamilton’s post-race disqualifications, we come away from Austin with double points for the team for the first time since the 2021 Hungarian Grand Prix,” said Dave Robson. “It’s also Logan’s first point in Formula 1 and he becomes the first American to score a point since Michael Andretti at the 1993 Italian Grand Prix.
“It has been another busy sprint weekend and today went well for both drivers. Conditions were a little different with changes to the wind and track temperature for today but overall, the car still behaved well and both drivers were able to push close to the points. All sprint races are difficult for rookie drivers and this very technical track is one of the worst.
“Logan struggled on Friday but with more laps, he improved rapidly and put in a very strong performance today. We didn’t expect COTA to be a good circuit for us so to come away with double points today represents a good effort from the whole team. Although Alpha Tauri were strong and scored some points, we still head to Mexico in a good Championship position.”
Here’s what the FIA said about the DQ
Here’s how F1 US GP panned out
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