Williams pulled off a small Formula 1 miracle in Monaco. Alex Albon starts from ninth place. The first points are within reach. But where there is light, there is also shadow. Logan Sargeant was missing some of the Williams update parts. Including the new rear wing. Instead, Sargeant had to use the high-downforce wing from Williams from last year.
Alex Albon: Was able to push the car for the first time in 2024
Alexander Albon couldn’t stop grinning after qualifying. Ninth place on the grid is the best qualifying result of the season. In addition, the overtaking opportunities in the principality are extremely limited. Even the Williams, which is comparatively weak in the long run, will be difficult to overtake.
“It was great! I’m very happy. We had confidence in the car since the first practice session. I was able to push for the first time,” said Albon happily. “Before, I was always afraid that I would overheat the tires and damage them. Today I was able to push them a little more each time.”
Albon starts the Grand Prix ahead of Sergio Perez and both Aston Martins. This is a promising starting position for the first points of the season. “For Alex, a good start tomorrow will be the key. He has to stay out of everything and use his good starting position,” explains Sven Smeets, sporting director of the Williams team.
Sargeant without updates on P17: rear wing from 2023
Logan Sargeant originally qualified in 17th place, but due to the disqualification of Nico Hülkenberg and Kevin Magnussen he moved up to 15th place. Incidentally, the American will also start ahead of Sergio Perez in the Red Bull. However, Sargeant does not attribute the gap to his teammate Alex Albon to a lack of driving performance.
“I think I drove well. We have a different rear wing to Alex, which is an important part. It also makes a big difference in terms of controlling the tires,” said Sargeant. “It feels like there was nothing more I could do. I always have a lot of confidence here, since Formula 2 it feels like it just clicked.”
But what is the difference in the rear wing? Most teams put a variation of their wing on their car in Monaco to generate more downforce. “I drive a different specification, so I have a different level of downforce. It’s the specification that we drove here last year,” said Sargeant. To give Sargeant a high-downforce package, Williams used the high-downforce rear wing from 2023.
“We just didn’t have enough parts, but I still made the best of the situation.”