(Reuters) – Williams look set to hand American racer Logan Sargeant a Formula One Friday free practice slot this season, with team boss Jost Capito hailing him on Saturday as a prospect for the future.
The 21-year-old Florida native is part of the Williams young driver academy and has won the last two Formula Two feature races with Carlin.
He also took pole at the French Grand Prix weekend at Le Castellet on Friday.
“I think that would be obvious,” Williams team boss Jost Capito told reporters on Saturday when asked about the possibility of Sergeant getting a Friday F1 slot.
“Logan won the last two races in F2, he set the car on pole yesterday so I think he deserves to get into the car.
“Of course, we are impressed, it’s his first season in F2,” continued Capito.
“We didn’t put any pressure on him so he has the time to develop and he’s really impressed us how fast he got to grips with the car, the tyre management and getting results. How he got the pole yesterday was really impressive.
“I think he will be in a Formula One car in the future, I’m absolutely convinced.”
All F1 teams must run a driver with limited F1 experience in at least two Friday first practice sessions this season.
Williams, last in the championship, handed one slot to Mercedes’ Dutch reserve Nyck de Vries at the Spanish Grand Prix in May.
Sergeant got his first taste of a Formula One car when he took part in a young driver test with Williams in Abu Dhabi last December.
He is the first American to win in the rebranded Formula Two series, although compatriot and 2016 Indianapolis 500 winner Alexander Rossi won in Abu Dhabi in 2013 when it was called GP2.
The United States has not had a Formula One driver since Rossi in 2015.
(Reporting by Alan Baldwin in London, editing by Ed Osmond)
