Alexander Albon says he thinks he is doing a better job than what he was doing couple of years ago, as he adds more on the car and weaknesses.
Williams’ Albon returned to the grid in 2022 after a sabbatical of sorts in 2021 following his dropping from Red Bull for Sergio Perez. Some might say he was hard done by and should have been kept on. Five Grands Prix in, the Thai racer has netted points twice at Melbourne with that penultimate lap pit stop and further points earned at Miami.
Now, as it stands, Williams are still 10th in the Constructors but it’s after five races, last season it took until Hungary for George Russell and Nicholas Latifi to score. Williams are doing better than 2021 in a manner of speaking.
While Latifi has come in for criticism, Albon’s stock has risen, still only 26, he has a wealth of experience from his period with Red Bull and Torro Rosso, his driving and race craft have been very impressive since his return and it has been noticed.
Albon appears rejuvenated, happier, more experienced, more mature even, if anything, the year away from the grid appears to have done him a world of good. “I feel I am doing a better job than I was a couple of years ago,” he said. “I’ve had a year that I want to address the areas I want to work on and mature”.
“I’ve a good team around me now as well and a lot of support from people close to me and obviously also at Williams. We are on the rise and I am too like I feel I am improving, more prepared and more experienced than I ever was. Yeah, I’m feeling pretty good,” summed up Albon.
It’s a good start for Williams and Albon, baby steps perhaps but they are headed in the right direction so early in the season and it’s a tonic for the famous marque. They still a lot to do but the main issue is they are progressing and they know what they want to achieve.
“We know the areas we are lacking in, we know where we are weak in certain quarters and it is really clear,” said Albon. “There are some places where we are just as quick as any other car but in saying that, in Miami on paper looked terrible for us and we were P2 at one point everywhere.”
2021 was a make or break time for Albon, Test/Reserve driver for Red Bull & AphaTauri as well as the DTM and towards the seasons end, he did some driver training for Yuki Tsunoda. He really was a busy man but it helped him as a person and as a driver and Williams too are reaping the benefits.
Here’s Alexander Albon on frustrating turning into points