What prompted Formula 1 driver Alexander Albon to continue to see his sporting future at Williams and how long he will drive for the British team
Alexander Albon will continue to drive for Williams in Formula 1 in the coming years. This was confirmed by the traditional British team ahead of the 2024 Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix in Imola
Williams did not provide details of the contract term. According to the team, they have agreed on a “multi-year contract extension” and are “entering the new era of Formula 1 rules” together. This suggests that Albon will race for Williams until at least 2027, as he was previously contractually bound to the Grove-based racing team until 2025 inclusive.
With his new Williams contract, Albon is one of the Formula 1 drivers with the greatest planning security in the field after world champion Max Verstappen, who, as is well known, signed with Red Bull until 2028 inclusive years ago.
Why Albon is staying with Williams
And Albon himself emphasizes: “We have a long-term project here that I really believe in and in which I want to play a key role.” That is why he has agreed to a contract extension of several years.
“It will take time,” says Albon. “But I’m confident that we can build the team properly and achieve great things together in the coming years. Because since I’ve been here, we’ve already made great progress. And I’ve seen the huge changes that are taking place behind the scenes to bring us forward again.”
Albon has been driving for Williams since 2022, having joined Formula 1 with Toro Rosso (now Racing Bulls) in 2019. After one and a half seasons with Red Bull and a break season in 2021 as a test driver, he joined Williams, where he scored the majority of the world championship points in 2022 and 2023. In 2024, Williams is still without a top 10 result and therefore currently second last in the Constructors’ World Championship
What Williams appreciates about Albon
But that’s not the end of the story. Like Albon, team boss James Vowles is also determined to re-establish Williams (at least) in the front midfield. He raves about Albon’s contribution: “Alex brings his exceptional talent, technical feedback and commitment to our project. The fact that he is staying shows his confidence in our project. “
Albon has repeatedly demonstrated since 2022 that he achieves good results “under pressure”. “Having him under long-term contract is a big piece of the puzzle on the way to getting back up the starting line-up,” says Vowles.
What this means for the driver market
Another cockpit has now been filled for the first season under the new Formula 1 regulations from 2026. At the same time, the list of potential successors is narrowing elsewhere: Albon has been mooted as a possible Red Bull candidate in recent weeks, should Verstappen actually leave the team. However, this now seems unlikely.
Before Albon, Fernando Alonso had already decided to stay with his current team. The two-time Formula 1 world champion will continue to drive for Aston Martin in the future.
In addition to Lewis Hamilton (from Mercedes to Ferrari), Nico Hülkenberg is also moving: he will leave Haas at the end of the year and join Sauber for 2025, which will start as the new Audi works team in 2026. Get all the information about the 2025 Formula 1 field here
