“Half the grid, top teams” chase Alex Albon | Revealing who wanted him this year
The Williams driver, highly touted throughout the F1 paddock, could take his talents further up the grid due to his emergence into a consistently high performer.
And Williams have already fended off interest to take Albon for this season from two rival teams.
“There is so much interest from other teams,” reported Lawrence Barretto for F1.com.
“Many of Red Bull’s senior engineers are understood to rate him very highly.
“It’s believed there have been conversations (either formal or informal) with at least half the grid, some of which, sources tell me, are top teams.
“The driver market is wide open for 2025 – aside from McLaren, every single team have at least one seat available.
“Sure, Albon doesn’t have a race win or World Championship under his belt – but those are actually few and far between. He has proved unequivocally that he is one of the most exciting talents on the grid right now.
“Few are operating at such a high level. If he maintains this trajectory, it’s difficult to see how he won’t be a key player in the 2025 driver market, which has already opened for business. That’s quite a position to be in, considering how bleak things looked at the end of 2020.
“Albon and his management have a tough call to make.
“If they stay at Williams, they will know it could be five or six years at the earliest before the team are competitive. By then, Albon will be 32 or 33. That’s still a decade younger than [Fernando] Alonso – but those years could well end up being his best.
“Stay, though, and if Williams continue to improve and become a force in the future, not only will Albon have played a significant role in that revival but he’ll have a team built around him.
“Sources say two teams were interested in his services for 2023.
“One of them was Alpine. Haas are believed to have been the other, as they assessed candidates to partner Kevin Magnussen.”
Albon has come a long way since being axed as Max Verstappen’s teammate at Red Bull.
Red Bull notably have a vacancy for the 2025 season. Sergio Perez’s deal will expire and he is coming under a lot of pressure.
Ferrari duo Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz are also contracted until the end of 2024 so, should the famous Italian team want to chase Albon, they could find space.
Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso is only tied down for next season creating another intriguing landing spot for Albon.
He currently sits 13th in the F1 standings.
