Why the pressure is heavier on Williams to deliver in Albon's second F1 century

There’s a Taurus-shaped hole in Alex Albon’s Formula 1 palmares. It’s why he wasn’t celebrating reaching 100 grand prix starts along with his fellow 2019 rookies Lando Norris and George Russell this time a year ago heading to the United States Grand Prix at Austin.

Like so many Red Bull juniors, Albon wouldn’t be at this point without the energy drink giant. In a parallel universe, the glittering constellations are shining down on a smart, successful, polite and engaging Formula E driver. That’s had Helmut Marko not come calling again ahead of the electric championship’s Valencia pre-season test in late 2018.

Back then, the late Jean-Paul Driot – whose e.dams squad Albon was essentially refusing to race for to make his F1 dream finally a reality – wondered if the now 28-year-old lacked the “political” edge to thrive in Red Bull’s set-up.

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Albon’s speed got him into its main squad from what was then Toro Rosso after just 12 races in 2019. But his lack of results against Max Verstappen the following year meant he was pushed aside and Sergio Perez’s career was prolonged right at the point of its extinction. Four years on, such decisions amid the headache of Verstappen’s overall brilliance can only be viewed as how Red Bull’s once great junior scheme has badly broken down.

For Albon, Williams has revived his career away from that confusion. He has now spent 60 of those 99 GP races with the historic British squad. These days, however, he’s acting just Driot once feared he could not.

Ignore the overdone team radio debate about how Franco Colapinto "divebombed" at the start last time out in Singapore. Instead, listen to Albon elsewhere, chastising Williams for being “too indecisive" at Hungary or pointing out “that wasn't a very good out-lap for tyres”, having had to push hard on new rubber to escape the warring Pierre Gasly and Kevin Magnussen at Monza.

This is the kind of demanding driver-to-team attitude is lionised in successful racers such as Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton.

Albon makes his 100th F1 start at Austin this weekend

Photo by: Mark Sutton / Motorsport Images

But it’s also proof of just how far Albon has come. Williams insiders speak of how his confidence has been revitalised since joining the team in 2022 – when F1’s most recent memory of Albon was how he recreated Hamilton’s line at Copse after the 2021 British GP in a failed bid from Red Bull to get the FIA to review that crash with Verstappen.

Williams team boss James Vowles recently said Albon has “become a real leader of the organisation” and is “committed [for] the best years of a career” in F1 with it.

Albon’s career progression heaps pressure on Williams within his story. Vowles is open in saying that Williams is set to sacrifice 2025 with the aim of nailing the rules reset coming in 2026 – by which point their combination will be closing in on a century together alone.

“Austin week and 100 grands prix: reaching such a milestone in the sport is a surreal feeling,” he said this week, which will feature his FW46 sporting a commemorative starts century logo at Austin.

"It’s a great opportunity to pause and reflect on the progress I’ve made as a driver, and I’m excited to reach 100 more races" Alex Albon on his milestone

“The past five years have brought with them some of the hardest but most rewarding times, and I’m grateful for every minute I’ve been a part of this sport and community. It’s a great opportunity to pause and reflect on the progress I’ve made as a driver, and I’m excited to reach 100 more races.

“I’m honoured to celebrate here in Austin with Williams for another home race for the team and [Williams owner] Dorilton. Hopefully, I can make it even more special by bringing home some points for the team.”

Albon committed early to a new multi-year contract extension beyond his existing agreement to race for Williams in 2025. That took him out of the dramatic driver market excitement this year, but it shouldn’t be forgotten that Red Bull still moved to offer Albon a first-option deal (that might’ve resulted in a three-year contract) from 2026.

Albon and Sainz will form a new-look Williams driver line-up from next year

Photo by: Andy Hone / Motorsport Images

Although his new Williams contract scuppered this, it suggests a path back to F1’s top current teams may not be totally closed to Albon – with Ferrari and McLaren in any case closed off for the foreseeable and Verstappen the cork in two line-up bottles for Red Bull and Mercedes.

But Vowles is bullish – actually in relation to Albon’s future team-mate Carlos Sainz – that "when we're beating Ferrari, I think he'll prefer to be here".

Vowles convinced Sainz not to sign the Sauber/Audi deal the Spaniard had long had in his grasp because he in turn firmly believes that the current Ferrari driver can lead Williams to the next steps it must reach to finally become a top F1 squad again.

Sainz certainly has experience of top-class teams from his journeyman career. Vowles wants him to highlight those best practice elements that stood out to him at Ferrari and McLaren – where Sainz experienced the seeds of long-term rebuilding before joining the Scuderia.

But Albon had those years within Red Bull to expound similar notes to his Williams colleagues. And that Sainz has been hired to supposedly lead Williams to its next gains jars somewhat with Vowles’s claims on Albon’s burgeoning leadership style with the team.

Yet the thrust behind pairing these two similarly cerebral drivers is that they should push each other to greater heights. It’s certainly a plan that has come together magnificently at McLaren – in pairing Norris with Oscar Piastri.

And the outcome for either Albon or Sainz in 2025 will shape the horoscope-like readings that so often carve F1 narratives for the next phase of their careers. Given he is a three-time GP race winner, the stakes are correspondingly higher for Sainz.

But, what with his loyalty and clear progress through his second F1 chapter since the start of 2022, it really is on Williams to soon deliver a car that Albon can take to compete on terms with Verstappen and co in the leading pack. Then F1 will see exactly how high his peaks truly will be.

Will Williams deliver a car for Albon to compete at the top with?

Photo by: Lionel Ng / Motorsport Images