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Pressure is mounting on Nicholas Latifi's shoulders as the season progresses. Especially after last weekend's Spanish GP, many believe that his days in F1 might be numbered.
The Iranian-Canadian driver has been an outlier in that despite being a pay driver, he has always been well-liked in the paddock and by F1 fans. He made his F1 debut in 2020, partnering former Williams driver George Russell. While it has been abundantly clear over the years that he is not as impressive a driver as his former teammate, most people chalked up his poor performance to the cars he was given and Russell's brilliance.
However, with Alex Albon joining the team in 2022, after a year out of the sport, many expected Latifi to win the intra-team rivalry hands down. Moreover, he was expected to take on the role of being the team leader after Russell's exit.
This, however, has not been the case. After the first six races of the season, it is already evident that Alex Albon is the better, more consistent driver of the two. While the former Red Bull driver has already scored points for the team on two different occasions, Latifi has not only not scored any points so far this season, he has also been constantly crashing and costing Williams its budget.
It's safe to say that Nicholas Latifi has been thoroughly outperfomed by both his teammates. While this was more palatable when George Russell, a former GP3 and F2 Champion, regularly outshone him, it brings up a lot of questions about the 27-year-old's skill when it is Alex Albon, a driver who has previously been dropped by Red Bull and has spent the past year without a seat in F1, who does it. Many believe that Latifi has finally been exposed this year.
The Williams driver's low performance levels have left him vulnerable, especially since the team is in a better place and does not need financing as badly as it once did. To make matters worse, Nyck de Vries drove alongside him in FP1 last weekend in Barcelona and outpaced him.
Nyck de Vries outpaced Nicholas Latifi on his first attempt
Much like the arrival of Alex Albon, Nyck de Vries driving alongside Nicholas Latifi was both a test and an opportunity for the Williams driver to prove his worth.
After all, the team's intentions were clear as day: seeing who the better driver was.
The Canadian was supposed to have had the edge over the Dutchman due to his experience both in the team and in F1. However, he managed to be slower than the Formula E driver in a car that he has been driving since March. While he was only marginally slower than de Vries, he was the slower driver that day.
Hence, if Williams wanted to know how good their second driver truly was, then it definitely got its answer: not that good.
If not de Vries, then Oscar Piastri, too, might be a viable option for Williams
Now, there is the possibility that Williams might not find de Vries to be a viable option for the team. The Dutchman will neither be the youngest nor the most impressive of drivers to make the grid. Despite having won an F2 title and a Formula E title, he has soundly been beaten by Leclerc, Albon, Russell, and Norris in the past. Also, guess who Nyck de Vries won his F2 title against. Nicholas Latifi!
Even if the Formula E champion does not get signed by Williams, one Oscar Piastri with an outstanding junior career is waiting to be signed by a team. Alpine, too, is more than willing to loan its junior driver to another team to find him a seat in F1.
What the FP1 comparison of last weekend showed was that Williams is interested in looking at a future beyond Latifi, be it with Nyck de Vries or with someone else. With Nicholas Latifi losing to de Vries in a straight shoot-out, it's fair to say that the countdown has started and the Canadian driver might not be able to stay in the sport beyond this season.
