Alex Albon reveals why he turned down rival moves to stay with Williams project

Alex Albon has revealed that his belief in the Williams “journey” and the team’s potential made up his mind to stay after signing a new multi-year contract.

Albon has impressed in a major way since returning to the Formula 1 grid with Williams in 2022, so much so that he was seen as a potential key player in the F1 2025 driver market. However, he is an option now taken off the table.

Alex Albon hopes to inspire belief in Williams ‘journey’

That is because Williams has confirmed that Albon has signed a new “multi-year” contract with the team, committing him to the new regulatory era coming for 2026.

Albon and Vowles sat down to discuss the deal following the announcement, with the Williams team principal revealing that Albon was “in demand” from other teams.

Asked directly by Vowles why he turned down opportunities elsewhere to stay with Williams, Albon said: “I believe the journey. That’s where it has it all come down to.

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“I looked at the work that was being done behind the scenes and you’ve been very open in where we are.

“I think the openness and the honesty of where we are, even in the present, you weren’t ever trying to say it was better than it was. But there was always an action. There’s always an action for us to go down.

“And it was the willingness of the people that were in the factory who wanted the change. And so you had this feeling that we’re always going in the right direction for the last year and a half, two years now. We’ve all been looking at this same kind of forwards direction.

“And it was one of them [sic] ones where, when you look at the results to begin the season, it was almost like it’s unfair where we are, because I feel like there’s so much that has gone right.

“And I guess unfair, it’s not a great choice, because it’s racing. In the end, it’s results-based. But I feel like the foundations of this team have improved so much and we are forever evolving that.

“And I feel like there’s clearly so much room now for us to grow, where I didn’t feel necessarily that was the case when I first joined.”

Albon received a loud round of applause from the Williams crew at their Grove base as his new deal was confirme,, Vowles joking that “was a better reaction than when I joined actually” as he asked Albon, on a serious note, whether he sees that as a vote of confidence from his colleagues.

“Yes, I definitely can see that,” he replied.

“I know we’ve really only put pen to paper not so long ago, but in the process it’s been about trying to use it as a shift to everyone, to try to motivate everyone.

“I’m hoping the fact that I believe in this team, to everyone at the factory, that’s reason in itself to realise that we all can do this. And I’m hoping I can give that reassurance in some ways to everyone, to know that I believe [in this] this journey, so you should too.”

Williams are still searching for their first point of F1 2024, though Albon has come close on a couple of occasions with P11 finishes in Saudi Arabia and Australia.

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