Camila Vega
Thai-British driver Alex Albon races for Williams Racing in Formula 1 with the number 23. He has had two podiums in his entire career, and in 2019 he entered F1 with Toro Rosso. In the same year, he was promoted to the Red Bull Racing team, where he raced alongside Max Verstappen, but in the 2021 season he was demoted to reserve driver.
The 26-year-old Thai driver, formerly of Red Bull joined Williams Racing at the beginning of the 2022 campaign replacing George Russell, who now competes for Mercedes. Now, he has just signed a new contract to confirm his future in Formula 1. Here we tell you everything you need to know about it.
Alex Albon’s Contract Extension With Williams
Albon recently refused to rule out a possible move to Aston Martin when Sebastian Vettel announced his retirement last week, before that seat was quickly taken by Fernando Alonso. Then, on August 3, it was confirmed that he will continue for more years with Williams Racing:
“I am really excited to be staying with Williams Racing for 2023 and look forward to seeing what we can achieve as a team in the remainder of this season and next year,” Albon said, according to the official F1 website. “The team has made some strong gains this year and it’s exciting to continue this journey and further develop our learnings together.”
Albon is responsible for all three Williams points so far in 2022, scoring a 10th-place finish in Australia followed by ninth in Miami.
“Alex is a tremendous driver and valued member of Williams Racing, so we’re thrilled to be able to confirm we will be working with him on a long-term basis,” said team principal Jost Capito.
“Alex brings a great blend of skill and insightful learnings that will help bring the team greater success in the future. He’s a fierce competitor, has proved a popular and loyal team member and we are delighted that he will provide a stable base for us to continue to develop in this new F1 car era.”
Confirming the news on social media, Albon made a joke of Oscar Piastri‘s tweet in which he denied he would be an Apline driver.
“I understand that, with my agreement, Williams Racing have put out a press release this afternoon that I am driving for them next year. This is right and I have signed a contract with Williams for 2023. I will be driving for Williams next year,” tweeted Albon.
Alpine said that Piastri, who is currently its reserve driver, was being promoted to replace Fernando Alonso. The press release had no quotes from Piastri, fueling chatter that the highly qualified Australian had not been consulted. Hours later, on Tuesday night, Piastri posted on social media that Alpine did not have his permission to confirm his signing and that he will not drive for the French team that has shaped his career.
Anyway, this is great news for Alex Albon, as he secured his future in the most important single-seater competition in the world.
