Red Bull will not replace Albon before end of the season - Horner
Red Bull will not replace Albon before end of the season - Horner
Red Bull team principal Christian Horner has promised he will not drop Alex Albon before the end of this season despite his latest disappointing result.
Albon was lapped by team-mate Max Verstappen en route to finishing a disappointing 12th at the Algarve International Circuit as the Dutchman again outclassed the 24-year-old, as he did with Pierre Gasly in 2019 prior to the Frenchman's demotion.
While Verstappen captured his ninth podium this season, finishing behind Mercedes duo Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas, Albon's poor performance has again drawn his future into question.
Horner, who has confirmed to eyeing up Sergio Perez and Nico Hülkenberg if Albon failed to perform in Portimão and Imola, has insisted the Thai-British driver will still see out the season with the team.
"We’re committed to Alex for this year," said Horner. "Everybody in the team wants him to lay claim to the seat next year.
"He’s a great guy, we believe he does have talent, he’s still only in his second year in Formula 1 and it’s tough, it’s very tough.
"It’s mentally tough, it’s tough going up against Max. He showed that he can bounce back previously and I really hope for him that can bounce back from a difficult weekend here at Imola next weekend."
Horner has repeatedly stated that Red Bull will not consider promoting Pierre Gasly for a second time, despite the Frenchman proving himself at Toro Rosso initially and then AlphaTauri over the past 12 months.
Gasly has twice been on the podium, even claiming his maiden F1 win at Monza earlier this year, but it has not been enough to convince Horner he is the answer.
"Our first and foremost priority is to give Alex the opportunity to make claim to that seat," added Horner. "Let’s not forget when he jumped in that car last year he outscored and outperformed Pierre significantly on the balance of 2019.
"If we were to swap them back, why would it be any different?"
Before you go...
Toto Wolff on Hamilton contract: We’ll have to sell factories to afford him now!
Perez "took himself out" in lap one incident - Verstappen
Related
Change your timezone:
Latest News
McLaren boss keen for stunning Alonso REUNION
- 15 minutes ago
Schumacher BLAMES Horner for Red Bull's Newey nightmare
- 1 hour ago
Hamilton in Ferrari F1 SHOCK after team snub revealed
- 2 hours ago
Newey set for CRUCIAL meeting over Red Bull future
- 2 hours ago
F1 News Today: ‘Absolute b******s’ Newey claims slammed as Norris INJURED while partying
- Today 05:57
Hamilton hit with SURPRISE Ferrari claim as new Cullen relationship blossoms - GPFans F1 Recap
- Yesterday 23:57
Related news
Newey set for CRUCIAL meeting over Red Bull future
Newey tipped to POACH key Red Bull staff if he joins F1 rivals
Ricciardo makes five-race admission in bid to survive F1 axe
Red Bull is 'burning' after Horner and Marko display
F1 Standings
Drivers
- Oliver Bearman
- Charles Leclerc
- Carlos Sainz
- Lando Norris
- Oscar Piastri
- Pierre Gasly
- Esteban Ocon
- Sergio Pérez
- Max Verstappen
- Alexander Albon
- Logan Sargeant
- Lewis Hamilton
- George Russell
- Nico Hülkenberg
- Kevin Magnussen
- Fernando Alonso
- Lance Stroll
- Valtteri Bottas
- Zhou Guanyu
- Daniel Ricciardo
- Yuki Tsunoda
Races
- Gulf Air Grand Prix of Bahrain 2024
- Saudi Arabian Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Australia 2024
- MSC Cruises Grand Prix of Japan 2024
- Grand Prix of China 2024
- Miami Grand Prix 2024
- Gran Premio dell'Emilia Romagna 2024
- Grand Prix of Monaco 2024
- Grand Prix du Canada 2024
- Gran Premio de España 2024
- Grand Prix of Austria 2024
- Grand Prix of Great Britain 2024
- Grand Prix of Hungary 2024
- Grand Prix of Belgium 2024
- Heineken Dutch Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Italy 2024
- Grand Prix of Azerbaijan 2024
- Grand Prix of Singapore 2024
- Grand Prix of the United States 2024
- Gran Premio de la Ciudad de Mexico 2024
- Grande Prêmio de São Paulo 2024
- Heineken Silver Las Vegas Grand Prix 2024
- Qatar Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Abu Dhabi 2024
About GPFans
GPFans is a multi-platform, multi-language brand dedicated to Formula One coverage. We bring you all the ins and outs of the sport, 24/7, everything from up-to-the-minute news and features to the latest viral stories and clips.We believe that a new generation of exciting, outspoken drivers will make F1 more popular than ever before, and we want to give our users access to as much of their heroes as possible, on and off the track. From Lewis Hamilton to Max Verstappen, Daniel Ricciardo to Sebastian Vettel, we provide in-depth analysis of every every Grand Prix in the season, from Australia to Abu Dhabi.
With Formula One under the new ownership of Liberty Media, how the sport is being covered is evolving, and GPFans will look to be at the heart of this progression into new media, as one of the fastest-growing sites covering the king of motorsports.
Follow us on your favorite social media channel
Corporate & Media
Innovatieweg 20C7007 CD, Doetinchem, Netherlands
+31645516860