F1 | Alex Albon ahead of F1 return: “I always want to be in Formula 1”
Alex Albon is set to make his Formula 1 return with Williams this season following a hiatus from the sport in 2021
Alex Albon initially made his Formula 1 debut with Toro Rosso (now AlphaTauri) in 2019 in a last minute move despite having signed a contract to race for Nissan E.Dams in Formula E. The Thai driver admits that the difficult last minute nature of his signing made his debut difficult.
"It happened very last minute," Albon told the Motor Sport Magazine Podcast.
"I don't want to go into details about how the whole thing kind of happened. But it was a tricky one because, obviously, with Nissan tied up and everything like that, it didn't make it as easy as I wish it had been, to switch from Formula E to Formula 1.
"Obviously, as a driver my age, I always want to be in Formula 1. That's everyone's goal [from] being a kid. But yeah, we just had to find a deal, and once the deal was sorted, that was it."
Albon’s call up to Formula 1 came towards the end of his career in Formula 2 as he closed in on a P3 finish in the standings.
"It was such a quick process," He said.
"And at no point until kind of late Russia [towards the end of the F2 season], had I ever thought F1 was possible, because I spent so long [having] never been part of a programme, never been really approached by a programme, never kind of having this opportunity.
"And then suddenly, literally, at the last two races of my Formula 2 career, I got this opportunity and I was in F1."
Making HQ home! @WilliamsRacing 📍 pic.twitter.com/p4oEPeLeFu
— Alex Albon (@alex_albon) January 19, 2022
Albon continued to discuss the difficulty in preparing for his step up to Formula 1 due to the last minute call.
"I was one of the most unprepared drivers, I think, ever to get into F1," he said.
"Because I think everyone's done testing before they arrive into F1, but my first test was literally the day one of Barcelona winter testing, and that was it. And I spun! I spun straightaway. I spun in Turn 4.
"And I was like, 'Oh my God, what have I got myself into?'"
The young Thai drivers’ initial stint in Formula 1 was a whirlwind. Mid-season in 2019 Albon was promoted to the main Red Bull team to partner Max Verstappen before being replaced by Sergio Perez for the 2021 season. During his hiatus he fulfilled a test and reserve driver role for Red Bull.
