The Thai-British Formula One racing driver has, just yesterday, been confirmed to stay at Williams Racing through the end of the 2025 F1 season, but is there something larger in store on the horizon for the driver now entering his 5th year?
A Difficult Start
Unlike others, Alex Albon’s journey into Formula One was certainly not straightforward. As a discarded member of the Junior Red Bull Academy in 2018, his hopes of racing in F1 were all but gone. A fortunate shuffle of seats for the Visa Cash App RB Formula One Team (formerly known at the time as Toro Rosso) provided Albon with his chance to show his real capabilities behind a single-seater.
Following half a season as a Torro Rosso driver and a season and a half as a Red Bull Racing driver, Albon was dropped from the second Red Bull seat and demoted to the team’s reserve/test driver for the 2021 iteration of the racing series. Following a season on the sidelines, the driver, racing under the Thai flag, signed for Williams Racing in the hope of reviving his once-promising career.
An Impressive Resurgence
The now 27-year-old driver landed at Williams in time for the start of the 2022 season with very low expectations surrounding the move. Williams Racing has, unfortunately, been one of the worst constructors in the past decade or two, laboring to regain the repeated glory the team saw in the 80s and 90s. As expected, Albon struggled in his first season with the British racing outfit, finishing 19th in the driver standings with just four world championship points to his name. However, he drove consistently throughout the campaign, finishing just outside the points numerous times in a car that shouldn’t have even been competing for them.
Moving into the 2023 season, Albon needed to further prove himself to keep the trust of Williams and the eyes of possible future suitors firmly on him. With a similarly poor car for most of the season, Alex Albon performed just about as well as he could. This time, Albon racked up 27 of William’s 28 world championship points, earning him a 13th-place finish in the driver standings and carrying a lackluster Williams to a 7th-place finish in the constructors’ standings.
Beyond 2025
This impressive career turnaround has thrust Albon back into the F1 spotlight, with many teams seemingly after his signature for future seasons. There are even murmurs that Red Bull Racing, his previous team, has looked at Albon as a very possible replacement for the currently-struggling Sergio Perez, the man who took his seat in 2021. It would not be surprising to see Albon move on from Williams past the 2025 season, searching for a team where he can further progress as a driver with a real shot of claiming silverware.
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