Alex Albon was a name that was frequently mentioned in the Formula 1 driver market. Although Williams had already declared before the start of the F1 season that the Thai was under contract for 2025, rumors about him did not stop. In recent months he has also been traded by Mercedes and Red Bull, among others. Now the last doubts have been eliminated: Albon will not only drive for Williams in 2025, but also beyond.
As the Grove-based Formula 1 team announced on Wednesday, Albon has signed a multi-year contract extension with Williams. How long the duration is has not been announced. However, it is now undoubtedly clear that Albon will also drive the new generation of vehicles for Williams in 2026. Since the contract for 2025 was already known, the emphasis on a “multi-year extension” can be interpreted to mean that 2027 would also be covered.
Alex Albon stays with Williams: believe in upward trend
As a reason for his extension with Williams, Albon cited the upward trend that Williams has been going through in recent years. The seventh-placed team in the World Cup last season was at the bottom of the field almost every year between 2018 and 2022. Only in 2021 did the team finish P8 in the World Championship. In the current season, however, Williams is one of two teams still waiting for points.
Formula 1 table: F1 World Championship as of 2024
But that doesn’t affect Albon’s belief in his team. “It’s been a difficult start to the year, but since I joined Williams we’ve made great progress together and I’ve seen the huge changes taking place behind the scenes to get us back to the front of the grid,” he says confidently.
James Vowles: Big vote of confidence for Williams
“This is a long-term project that I really believe in and in which I want to play a key role. That’s why I signed a multi-year contract. The journey will take time, but I am confident that we are building the right team to take on the coming years “To achieve great things in the next few years,” continued Albon.
Team boss James Vowles was quoted as saying: “We are delighted to have been able to secure Alex’s long-term future at Williams Racing. He has exceptional talent, technical input and commitment to the cause. This is a huge vote of confidence in Williams and the path back to the competitiveness where we are.”
Albon has been something of a solo entertainer at Williams since his arrival in 2022. In his debut season for the team, he was clearly superior to his teammate Nicholas Latifi, as was Logan Sargeant in 2023. Albon collected 27 of 28 Williams points in 2023 and single-handedly secured P7 in the constructors’ championship. It is unclear who his teammate will be in the future; there are currently even reports that Sargeant could lose his cockpit to Mercedes junior Andrea Kimi Antonelli during the 2024 Formula 1 season.