Williams tight-lipped on extent of Albon's Red Bull connections
Williams tight-lipped on extent of Albon's Red Bull connections
Williams CEO Jost Capito held his cards close to the chest and insisted Alex Albon "is a Williams driver and that is it" despite certain Red Bull ties remaining.
Despite Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff stating Red Bull must 'set Albon free' from his contract in order to join Mercedes-powered Williams, the switch has happened with Red Bull retaining "future options" on the driver.
The extent of the connections, however, remains largely unknown with Capito tight-lipped on the possibility of Red Bull being able to call up Albon in a reserve capacity should Max Verstappen or Sergio Perez be unable to race.
“I just can say, he is a Williams driver and we decide what he is doing and what he is not doing," said Capito when asked directly.
The scenario is one Williams faced last year with George Russell borrowed by Mercedes in Sakhir when Lewis Hamilton was unable to race.
“What I can tell you is that he is a Williams driver in 2022, whatever that means is up to you," Capito added.
"Maybe you have to ask Red Bull but for us, he is a Williams driver and that is it.”
Who controls Albon's F1 future?
In its driver announcement, Williams commented only that the partnership of Albon and Nicholas Latifi was its "driver line-up for the 2022 FIA Formula One World Championship".
Given Red Bull's comment on holding "future options", it is unclear as to whether it is Williams or Red Bull that holds the first call on Albon for 2023 despite the driver being “released”.
“We don’t comment on the details of the contract," explained Capito. "I can just say again that he is a Williams driver.
“Whatever happens next year, we can’t predict that. We don’t know if he will be happy with us, we are happy with him. We will see where it goes but in general, I don’t intend on having drivers going in and out.
“That doesn’t mean anything for the contract but in my mind, it means we want to build the team and we want to build it long-term and we will see at this stage where the team is at now, Alex is the right driver.”
Related
Change your timezone:
Latest News
Hamilton dealt major Newey blow as shock COMPLICATION revealed
- 34 minutes ago
F1 News Today: Incredible Verstappen exit clause reignites F1 rival talks as Mercedes milestone reveals shock RED livery
- 2 hours ago
Horner outlines Ricciardo target to save F1 dream as major Newey announcement made - GPFans F1 Recap
- Yesterday 23:57
Mercedes reveal shock RED livery to celebrate historic milestone
- Yesterday 22:57
Ricciardo makes five-race admission in bid to survive F1 axe
- Yesterday 21:57
Red Bull is 'burning' after Horner and Marko display
- Yesterday 20:57
Related news
F1 champion claims team may WRITE OFF Chinese GP sprint race
Schumacher fires scary message at F1 team boss as worst fears CONFIRMED
F1 team hire former Man Utd and Chelsea supremo
F1 team boss makes SHOCKING chassis revelation
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