Ahead of the 2024 season, a lot of eyes are already on Alex Albon. There are rumors of bigger teams wanting to sign him. Albon is currently contracted to Williams until 2025 and will be eager to lead the team to success in these years. However, team principal James Vowles feels that Albon won’t really be able to do too much with the mechanical package the team currently has at their disposal.
Williams appointed Vowles as their boss in 2023 and made big strides. They were in the top 10 in several races, contrary to their ‘perennial backmarkers’ status. They secured 28 points by the end of 2023, which allowed them to finish a respectable P7 in the standings.
Us waiting for Bahrain pic.twitter.com/GdkYjWV8q3
— Williams Racing (@WilliamsRacing) February 7, 2024
Now, Vowles aims to take the team even higher, as reported by AMuS. He has a target in mind, and that is to compete with Alpine, a team stuck in the midfield. But with Mercedes and Red Bull reportedly interested in their star driver Albon, will the midfield be enough to convince him to stay? Vowles clears these expectations out.
“We are not yet good enough to make the next leap within a year. [Alpine] they were only one position ahead of us in the team rankings, but the point gap was quite large. If we were to finish ahead of them, that would be “That’s a huge step.”
Vowles’ comments are a clear indication that Albon cannot think of competing with the top guns at the moment. Alpine, a team Vowles aims to beat, competes for ‘rare podiums’ on the odd occasions. So it’s safe to say, that is where Albon’s expectations have to lie ahead of the 2024 season.
James Vowles has his say on Alex Albon’s future
Following the shocking news that Lewis Hamilton is about to move to Ferrari in 2025, F1 fans are convinced that anything can happen in the silly season. Hence, no one rules out Alex Albon moving to one of the bigger teams. His team principal, Vowles, however, thinks that the Thai-British driver will honor his contract.
During the Williams launch, Vowles made it clear that Albon has a contract until the 2025 season. Unlike Hamilton, who didn’t honor the two-year deal he signed with Mercedes last year, Vowles expects Albon to stay put.
Hmm…. I suppose the lesson from the last week with Lewis and Ferrari is that contract length is one thing, option clauses for exits are another…. https://t.co/sHewBAGjYz
— Karun Chandhok (@karunchandhok) February 6, 2024
The majority of the F1 community, however, seems to think that Albon’s mind could change if a race-winning team approaches him. As Karun Chandhok pointed out on his X account,
“Hmm. I suppose the lesson from the last week with Lewis and Ferrari is that contract length is one thing, option clauses for exits are another.”
Regardless of where his future lies, Albon will be focused on having a great season ahead and having a bigger points haul than 2023 for both himself and Williams.
