Amidst Red Bull and Mercedes Rumors, James Vowles Hails “Champion” Alex Albon as Backbone of Williams’ Success

Sabyasachi Biswas | 05/02/2024
Amidst Red Bull and Mercedes Rumors, James Vowles Hails “Champion” Alex Albon as Backbone of Williams’ Success

Alex Albon had a brilliant 2023 and this brought him ample attention from Mercedes and Red Bull coming into 2024. Both of these teams are looking for a talented driver for their second seat and feel Albon might be a fine choice. Amid these interests, James Vowles, who oversaw the rise of the Thai-British driver in his team Williams last year, came up to praise him as the reason behind their success.

Albon is set to stay with the British team until 2024, unless he decides to extend his contract further. Vowles, while hailing his star driver said to SpeedWeek as quoted FormulaPassion,

“The year-end Alex really came out of his shell and I described him as a champion. I’ve been lucky enough to work with many champions in my life, and I’m incredibly happy that he’s here. Obviously, he became the backbone of our success”

Albon single-handedly fought for Williams last year. He claimed 27 points and helped the British team finish the season in P7 with 28 points. He himself finished 2023 in P13 in the driver’s championship. His best results came during the Canadian and Italian Grand Prix, finishing seventh on both occasions.

In 2022 too, he was the lead driver at Williams, getting the better of Nicholas Latifi throughout the campaign. Vowles need to make sure that they provide him with a competitive car that is enough to bring in points, if not a podium or race-winning car. Otherwise, Albon might switch sides at the end of 2024.

What’s next for Alex Albon beyond 2024?

James Vowles clearly knows the potential Alex Albon has at this stage of his career. Previously, Albon has gone through some tough times in his career, especially during the last leg of his Red Bull days. Now the main man at Williams, Albon is oozing confidence.

Therefore, a car fit enough to help Albon fight for points will be all he requires this season. Speaking on this, Vowles added,

“He [Albon] must be demanding and must ensure that his requests are satisfied. I think now he is very sure of himself and the direction he is following.”

The 27-year-old is gathering interest from several teams on the grid. Even if the top teams end up not going from him, Albon has more than enough to contribute to better midfield teams like Aston Martin or Alpine.

On the other hand, the former Red Bull driver has already refused a call from their sister team, Visa Cash App RB. This is simply because he did not want to go back  after having driven for Red Bull Racing alongside Max Verstappen from 2019-2020. Therefore, he would very much have his eyes on the top teams and vice versa for the 2025 F1 season and onwards.

Post Edited By: Somin Bhattacharjee
Alex Albon James Vowles Max Verstappen

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Sabyasachi Biswas

Sabyasachi Biswas is an F1 journalist at The SportsRush. With over one and a half decades of love for the sport and five years of experience in the field, he dreams to be a regular at the paddock when the lights go out. A Red Bull fan and F1 fan in general over the years, he enjoyed watching Felipe Massa, Sebastian Vettel, and Max Verstappen dominate the track. Apart from F1, he's also a big-time Madridista and Federer fanatic. He was a sub-junior level footballer, won inter-district quizzes and debate competitions back in school. A travel freak throughout, he tries different cuisines and learns new cultures whenever he's away from the keyboard.

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