It was announced on Tuesday that Formula 2 driver Franco Colapinto would be stepping in to replace Logan Sargeant at Williams for the remainder of the 2024 Formula 1 season.
Sargeant had endured a torrid time in his short spell in F1, scoring just one point at his home Grand Prix in Texas in his 36 race starts.
His shock axing has opened the door for Colapinto to prove himself at the top level. The 21-year-old joined the Williams Academy in 2023 and made an FP1 appearance this year at Silverstone.
Colapinto, who was sixth in the Formula 2 standings heading into the next round at Monza, will become the first Argentine driver to start an F1 race since Gaston Mazzacane in 2001.
Franco Colapinto congratulates Oliver Goethe on F2 promotion
With Colapinto’s promotion, MP Motorsport were in need of a replacement for the last four races of the season.
And just one day after the Argentine’s departure for F1, the team announced that Formula 3 talent Oliver Goethe would be promoted to the F2 seat.
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The German had been in his season in F3 driving with Campos Racing, where he secured one victory at the Sprint Race in Imola and three podiums in total.
Goethe stood a very slim chance of winning the F3 title as he sat 35 points behind leader Leonardo Fornaroli with 39 points up for grabs. But now, the 19-year-old will be given the exciting opportunity to prove himself at the next step up.
Writing on Instagram after MP Motorsport’s announcement, the outgoing Colapinto, who is with the same management as Goethe in Bullet Sports Management, offered his congratulations to the German.
The Argentine wrote: “Hehehe vamos ollie!! Bravo @bulletsportsmanagement 2×1,” with an exploding head and star eyes emoji.
Goethe’s new teammate Dennis Hauger also wrote a message on social media expressing his excitement: “Eeeyy new teammate,” followed by a cry-laughing and rock hand emoji.
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The F2 championship heads to Monza as the title fight heats up
Goethe has four rounds and eight races to prove his worth and show that he may be ready for a permanent seat in F2.
The championship heads to Monza with Isack Hadjar leading the standings by 36 points over Gabriel Bortoleto.
The Frenchman has won more races than any other driver, claiming victory at four races. This puts Hadjar one win off Charles Leclerc’s record when he wont the title in 2017.
F2 will head to Baku and Qatar before the season finale in Abu Dhabi.