Williams Racing boss James Vowles claims any doubts surrounding his driver, Alex Albon, should be gone, as the driver has more than proven himself during his stint at Grove.
Albon came into Formula 1 through the Red Bull junior driving program, making his debut with Toro Rosso (now Racing Bulls) in 2019, and within that season was promoted to Red Bull Racing to replace the struggling Pierre Gasly, who was drafted to replace Daniel Ricciardo alongside Max Verstappen.
Albon remained with Red Bull Racing until the end of the 2020 season, when he was let go after struggling compared to Verstappen and went on to spend 2021 on the sidelines until Williams gave him a lifeline as he joined them in 2022 and remains with them up to our present time.
Since the start of the 2023 F1 season, Vowles has become the boss of Williams, and needless to say, he has been impressed by what he has seen from Albon, who seems to thrive in the friendly environment at the once-great British team, a stark contrast to the high-pressure Red Bull environment.
Silence all the doubters
And while many have doubted the British-Thai driver's talents, Vowles insists that is not the case and said: "I can tell you from the outset he was very quick.
"But he needed the right forum where the world isn’t questioning his teammates or what’s going on. There’s no questioning now. Carlos is absolutely the reference you need.
“Alex, this year, every time there has been a result [available], he’s gone and picked it up. Simple as that. His pace has been outstanding.
"I think if there’s any doubts, it should be gone by now in people’s minds," the former Mercedes strategy boss insisted before continuing: "I would say the biggest difference I’ve noticed with Alex is a step up in his confidence and belief. That’s the main thing—in the team and in himself at the same time.
"Every human being goes through cycles where they’re more or less confident in themselves and the car and what goes around.
"You cannot waver, Alex, one bit this year. Not for a second can you even just push him. He is absolutely confident in what he is doing and what the car is doing around that.
“That doesn’t mean we’re perfect on the car, not by any stretch of the imagination, but his driving force is one of, ‘Fix this, fix this, and I will go faster’, and it’s directing the team in the right way," added Vowles.
A team player
Albon's latest teammate, Carlos Sainz, has struggled to get up to speed with the Williams FW47 since joining from Ferrari at the start of the 2025 F1 season, but Vowles revealed the Spaniard has enjoyed the support from the other side of the team's garage.
He said: "We have some peculiarities in this car on just how to approach certain corners, but he’s really, really good at vocalizing that and helping Carlos as well—he’s not keeping it for himself.
“It’s immediately straight out there, ‘Look at this, this is what I’m doing here’, and then helping the engineers drive the direction of travel.
"In that way, he’s more vocal than I’ve heard him before, and his direction is absolutely spot on," Vowles concluded.
While Sainz may have scored Williams' highlight result of the 2025 F1 season, the third place in Baku, his first podium with the team, Albon has scored more points so far.
Compared to Sainz's 32 points and 12th place in the 2025 F1 Drivers' Championship, Albon has scored 70 points so far and is eighth in the standings. His best result was fifth place in Australia, Miami, Imola, and the Netherlands.
(Quotes from Beyond the Grid podcast)
Latest News
Loading
