Shortly after the opportunity at Alpine was closed off for Mick Schumacher, the German driver might actually be on the verge of making an immediate comeback to Formula 1.
Williams team principal James Vowles was visibly furious when Logan Sargeant, set to be replaced by Carlos Sainz in 2025, crashed the heavily-updated 2024 car into the barriers at Zandvoort in a substantial and fiery collision.
"When you have an extensive development package on the car like we do here, that is the worst possible time to put a racing car into the guardrails," he said.
"100 people worked their fingers to the bone for weeks on our major upgrade so we could have two cars with the new parts," Vowles added. "And then everything is unnecessarily in ruins within a second. You don't take full risk in the third practice session in the rain."
Speculation is now mounting that Vowles' tolerance with Sargeant has finally reached its limit, and he may be ousted from the team following Sunday's race at Zandvoort.
"I don't want to make an emotional decision now," Vowles stated.
One suggested alternative is Red Bull's reserve driver Liam Lawson, but Dr Helmut Marko quickly dismissed that idea. "We have our own plans for Liam in the near future," he informed Auto Motor und Sport.
Vowles, whose team runs on Mercedes power units, was then seen leaving Toto Wolff's office at Zandvoort soon after Sargeant's fiery accident.
This development could bode well for Mick Schumacher - the official Mercedes reserve driver.
When queried about the 25-year-old German's prospects on the F1 grid, Wolff commented to Sky Deutschland on Saturday: "It's difficult for me to judge. Audi is the only team that hasn't named its second driver yet.
"And I don't know what Williams will do after today's debacle."
Schumacher also spoke about his situation on the day of qualifying for the Dutch GP.
"I'm not giving up - there are still two seats open," he asserted. "Discussions are ongoing, but nothing more than that."
Any replacement of Sargeant by Schumacher would be a temporary arrangement, as Sainz is already contracted for the 2025 season. Audi remains Schumacher's only realistic chance for a permanent seat.
"Everyone is taking their time now," Schumacher remarked. "At the end of the day, they know what I can do and what they will get. I have two years with Haas under my belt and they have seen what I can do. Let's see."
