Albon Feels He Deserves To Fight For Podiums And Race Wins

Tuesday, 19 December 2023 at 10:00

Updated at Tuesday, 19 December 2023 at 10:01

The 27-year-old Formula One driver Alex Albon suggested in a recent interview he feels like he deserves to be fighting for the podiums and, hopefully, race wins.

F1 is an interesting sport for a variety of reasons. One of these reasons is the dynamics between the drivers and their teams. Some people view them as one unit, but they do not always have to be.

Drivers usually want to become world champions, and they want to do it fast. Each of the F1 teams would also like to compete for the title, but many can't.

So even though some drivers act as a part of the team, they might very happily change it when they get the chance to get into a better team that will bring them closer to fighting for the title.

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Williams F1 driver Alex Albon, whose team finished last in the previous Championship and seventh this year, described the situation very well. As reported by RacingNews365, he said:

"You have to take it two ways as a driver. Every driver has to be, in some ways, short-sighted. Our career spans, our competitiveness, and our desires don't always match up to a team's long-term plan."

Albon is one of the rare drivers who seems to have settled in a not-so-competitive team with the desire to build the team up rather than escape when they have the first chance.

"But you also understand that completely. We're not going to turn the car over in a year and just be fighting with the Red Bull. There's so much that has to be done."

Williams has a new team principal, James Vowles, who came from Mercedes ahead of the season 2023. Vowles knows how a winning team looks, and Albon likes to have somebody on the team who knows where it needs to go.

James [Vowles], out of everyone, understands just how far behind we must be in certain areas. It'd be silly for James to say 'Next year I'm going to be able to make a car that that's going to be fighting for wins'. That just doesn't happen.

Albon suggested he feels he deserves to fight for podiums and race wins already, and he seems to be dedicated to winning with Williams at this point.

So the fact that he's realistic about it gives me confidence. But at the very same time, I feel like I'm driving well. I feel like I'm in a position where I deserve to be fighting podiums and, hopefully, race wins.

On the other hand, Albon's contract expires at the end of the next season. Do you think the 27-year-old will stay with Williams if some better team expresses interest?