Albon quickly learned how ruthless Formula 1 is: 'Lots of political noise'

Being Max Verstappen's teammate is no easy task. As a former Red Bull Racing driver, Alexander Albon knows that the Dutchman's teammate has to give everything in the car. Speaking to GPblog.com, the Williams driver also gave advice to his future teammate and tells more about the development of the FW44.

Albon praises Verstappen

Max Verstappen has already had several teammates during his time at Red Bull Racing. Pierre Gasly had to make room for Albon midway through the 2019 season after his disappointing results. The British-Thai driver lasted longer but was replaced by Sergio Perez in 2021.

The Mexican has had a tough few weeks with mediocre performances and a big gap towards Verstappen. Albon knows better than anyone how difficult it can sometimes be to drive alongside the Dutchman.

"There’s no secret that Max is extremely talented. You need to be at the top of your game. For someone so young, he is experienced in the world of Formula 1. It’s not an easy feat. No point denying that", Albon says in a conversation with GPblog.com.

Albon gives advice to future teammate

In 2023, Albon will have a new teammate at Williams. Nicholas Latifi will leave the team at the end of this season. Who his replacement will be is not yet known. Among others, Logan Sargeant is on Williams' list. What advice would Albon give to his new teammate?

"I don't think there’s too much advice to give to be honest. I think you learn your own ways. That’s personal to you. I don’t think you need to listen too much to your competitors or rivals, if you listen to them they will give you the wrong answer anyway."

The Williams driver continued: "What I learned from F1 in my first year was how big of a beast it actually is. The media is relentless. It can be positive or negative. More chance of it being negative, that’s the world we live in. You need to have good people around you. There is a lot of noise around in Formula 1, if it’s from the team, political noise or from the media, you need to trust in yourself and have the right people in tough situations and tough moments. That’s important in Formula 1."

Williams working hard on car development

An excellent season is unfortunately not being had by Williams. The team are in last place in the constructors' championship with six points, of which Albon has brought in four. The car does not yet have the pace to fight in the midfield, but Albon is positive about development for next year. The team practically had to start from scratch this season because of the new regulations, but as a result, there is plenty of room for improvement.

Albon: "It’s maybe not the year we wanted. That’s not to say we cannot turn that around. With the regulations being so new still, with the budget cap as well, there’s more potential for change. More chances to bounce back. I think you’ve seen already our car is completely different from the start of the year until now. Different philosophy which shows you how open it is now."

Albon is doing his best to help the team solve the problems as much as possible. "Next year you will see different cars on the grid to this year. Being involved in the factory, it’s very clear where we need to improve as a team. It is my responsibility to help in those areas. I think, I know for a fact that we understand that and we are working together on that. We need to work together as a team on our weaknesses and make them strengths."

"It’s not a small step to the midfield, we need a good step to fight them. But I see the work going on and the changes being made, I have no reason why we couldn’t get there at some point", Albon said.

This article was made in collaboration with Ludo van Denderen