Alex Albon reveals extent of Williams damage as Logan Sargeant call made
Could Alex Albon take over Logan Sargeant's Williams for the rest of the Australian GP weekend?
Alex Albon has admitted “not much can be salvaged” from the wreckage of his Williams as he prepares to take over team-mate Logan Sargeant’s car for the rest of the Australian Grand Prix weekend.
Albon brought out the red flags during the opening practice session in Melbourne when he crashed heavily in the second sector, his FW46 bouncing off the Turn 6 exit kerb into the wall at Turn 7 before skating across the track into the Turn 8 barrier.
Alex Albon to take over Logan Sargeant’s Williams for Australian GP
Despite being uninjured during the incident, Albon was ruled out of FP2 as Williams assessed the extent of the damage.
With Williams confirming to PlanetF1.com that the team do not have a spare chassis on site, Albon’s participation for the rest of the weekend had been plunged into doubt.
But after suggestions that Albon could take over team-mate Sargeant’s chassis from Saturday, with Sky F1 commentator Martin Brundle describing it as a “no-brainer” if Williams are forced into running just a single car, that call was indeed made by the team.
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Speaking after his crash, Albon had revealed that his car was highly unlikely to be repairable after taking such a sizeable hit in FP1.
He told Formula 1: “There’s not much that can be salvaged, if I’m honest.
“We’re going through it now, looking at where the damage is.
“It’s going to be tricky, that’s for sure, so obviously very frustrating for that reason.
“Honestly, I won’t be able to tell you until later today.”
Asked if there was a possibility that he will take over Sargeant’s car, he said: “I’m not sure, to be honest.”
Albon was surprised by the car’s reaction after striking the exit kerb at Turn 6, revealing the car bottomed out unexpectedly after landing.
Asked to describe the incident, he explained: “Just exploring a little bit, went a bit wide, had a bit of an aggressive kerb strike and it lifted up the front.
“I honestly didn’t think anything of it at the time. I thought: ‘Okay, it’s fine. I’ll obviously just back out and let the car land.’
“But when I did land I bottomed out pretty badly and when it bottomed out it just kind of spat me [into the wall].
“So frustrating, of course, and obviously just feel bad for everyone back at the factory and here at the track.
“It did a lot of damage, so let’s see if we can get it repaired.”
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