Who could replace Sargeant if Williams opt for change?

Williams holds the final call for the F1 grid next season with only Logan Sargeant's seat left to be officially secured.

The American rookie has come under pressure given his incident record across the campaign thus far, with his crashes largely overshadowing what has been an impressive improvement with regards to pace compared with teammate Alex Albon.

Whilst scrutiny is increasing with no further space up for grabs, a number of names have been linked with the seat alongside Albon and RacingNews365.com has taken a look at each of them, as well as Sargeant himself.

Liam Lawson

The New Zealander has pulled up trees since beginning his substitute roll for the injured Daniel Ricciardo at AlphaTauri at the Dutch Grand Prix.

Lawson was tipped by many to continue with the Faenza-based outfit into next term given his impressive performances - including a points finish at the Singapore Grand Prix.

But Red Bull instead decided to wait one more year before handing Lawson what will almost certainly be a full-time role in 2025, with Yuki Tsunoda and Ricciardo elected for a drive next term.

Whilst his talent would no doubt be a huge plus for Williams, the fact he would likely only be released for one year by Red Bull would not sit well with a team focused on building for the future.

No matter how popular this move would be, it won't happen.

Mick Schumacher

Another move that would be popular amongst the F1 fanbase, Mick Schumacher has been a name floated for a switch from his Mercedes reserve role.

The German is off the grid having been released by Haas at the end of last season and has found his feet assisting the Silver Arrows' Lewis Hamilton and George Russell.

But whilst Mercedes' ties with Williams - not least with former Strategy Director James Vowles as Team Principal - the move would make some sense.

However, Schumacher looks all but certain to be making a switch to endurance racing with Alpine's World Endurance Championship Hypercar programme, leaving a switch to Williams highly unlikely.

Théo Pourchaire

Sauber Academy driver Théo Pourchaire has impressed throughout his time in F2 having joined at the age of 17.

Now 20, the Frenchman looks set to secure the F2 championship with ART yet his obvious avenue onto the F1 grid has been blocked by the retention of Zhou Guanyu and Valtteri Bottas at Hinwil-based Alfa Romeo.

Whether Williams would see Pourchaire as an upgrade on a seasoned Sargeant is hard to believe, so this move is unlikely to happen.

Frederik Vesti

Pourchaire's F2 teammate Frederik Vesti has the same issue - what does he bring that Sargeant can't?

Vesti also doesn't have the title upcoming as Pourchaire likely does, so why has he been linked?

There is no doubt he has a bright future with a mix of strong pace and exciting racecraft, but the clincher here is his Mercedes ties, following the same path as George Russell had done before him.

But this is unlikely to be an avenue Vowles would wish to pursue for next season.

Felipe Drugovich

Felipe Drugovich has been searching for an F1 drive ever since his F2 title win last season.

The Brazilian took up a role as part of Aston Martin's development programme and has served as a reserve driver for the Silverstone-based outfit this year.

Rumours spread that a potential IndyCar tilt had been turned down so that Drugovich could find a seat on the F1 grid and with no other avenue clearly lined up, he sits as the most likely candidate to replace Sargeant, should Williams flip the switch.

Logan Sargeant

Crashes aside, Sargeant has had a solid rookie year.

The progression arc when judging pace and performance has been pleasing - he was matching Albon throughout the Japanese Grand Prix weekend before his qualifying crash, all with dated aerodynamic components given the budget cap squeeze.

There is no doubt improvements have to be made - the incidents seriously dent development opportunities for the entire team - but the foundations of a strong F1 driver are there.

Sargeant's status as F1's only American is a huge draw commercially for the team, giving him extra scope to stay and continue developing.

A lot of the pressure is being applied because the rest of silly season is over. The sensible move would be to retain and, judging by recent comments from the Williams hierarchy, that is exactly what will happen.