People “expect less” from US F1 drivers

After a difficult start to his rookie campaign in F1 last year, Sargeant became the first driver from the United States since 1993 to score points when he was classified 10th at his home race in Austin. 

Although he had to wait until the end of the campaign to secure himself a contract extension for 2024, he is hopeful that this season will offer him the chance to be more consistent. 

Despite F1’s push to expand its presence in the United States over the years, the country has struggled to find a driver able to consistently fight at the front, and Sargeant thinks the state of affairs has prompted some prejudices about the prospects for Americans overall.

Speaking to Autosport, he said: “I think people think and expect less from an American driver.

“But at the end of the day, it doesn’t matter, because as long as the people who matter sort of know what’s going on, and know what you’re capable of, that’s all that matters.   

“So the external noise is just realistically completely irrelevant.

“You just do your job, you keep working hard, and you work with the people who can make a difference to your career, and you do your best for them.

“They also try to help you move forward as well. And that’s all you can really do. So as long as the people who need to know, know, then the rest is completely irrelevant.”  

Sargeant believes one of the main reasons Americans have been such a rarity in F1 is because of the hurdles they must overcome regarding changing continents if they want to get on the junior racing ladder in Europe.

This is one reason why North Americas series such as IndyCar and NASCAR are more appealing for them.

“I just believe there’s a lot of obstacles for Americans to get into F1,” he said. 

“It’s not easy to sort of pick your life up, move to Europe and race overseas. It costs a lot of money. It’s just a lot easier to race in America.

“And you obviously have great options there between IndyCar and NASCAR. It’s not an easy move for anyone. So I feel like that’s why I feel, and especially when I was coming through, there were very few American drivers even attempting to get to F1.”

Sargeant however remains optimistic that there will be more American drivers like him in F1 in the future.  

“I look at the karting list now and there’s a lot more,…