Alex Albon has signed a multi-year contract extension with Williams, which will keep him at the team into Formula 1’s new regulation era when it kicks off in 2026.
Speaking of the contract extension, Albon said: "I am incredibly happy to be remaining with Williams Racing and to continue working with such a talented and dedicated team of people.
“This is a long-term project that I really believe in and want to play a key role in which is why I have signed a multi-year contract.
I would have bet that Albon was also a contender for the Audi or Mercedes seat. Williams must have a promising outlook if he decided to stay with them instead of gambling on a one-year stint at Mercedes or a restart with Audi.
No way, Audi is looking towards Albon as a contender. Sainz is a better option for both Audi and Merc. Alpine boys(mainly Gasly) are also looking to move, one of them could land at Audi.
Vowels could have helped with his promotion to Merc, but doesn’t look like there was much interest from Merc.
If Vowels and Albon bring Williams to top of the midfield and I belive these two are right people for this job. He might get called back to Red Bull to replace Perez in 2026 (maybe), because I don’t see another top drive for him in the near future .
Meanwhile, I am happy to see him at Williams with Vowels, hoping he gets a fair chance in a top team.
Sure. With Sainz Sr.'s history with Audi, Sainz is definitely their number one choice. However, Audi will likely have a pipeline of drivers, as Sainz’s chances for a seat at Red Bull or Mercedes are also strong. If Sainz isn’t available, I would have assumed Audi would try to grab Albon.
Didn’t Sainz all really pass on Audi? Things can always change, but I am pretty sure I saw that he turned down the contract Sauber/Audi offered him.
I guess I could look it up with the phone in my hand…
There are conflicting reports about Sainz and Audi deal:
Sainz has reject Audi’s offer for a chance at Redbull or Merc https://www.si.com/fannation/racing/f1briefings/news/f1-rumor-carlos-sainz-declines-audi-contract-lm22
Sainz denys he has reject Audi’s offer https://www.crash.net/f1/news/1047739/1/carlos-sainz-insists-no-truth-reports-he-has-turned-down-audi-f1-offer
Audi is a huge gamble at the moment and I won’t blame him for not taking it. Accepting Audi’s offer means driving that green meme car at the back of the grid in 2025 and hoping that Audi develops a front running car. If he can land at Merc or better yet Red Bull, he remains in the top 5 teams on the grid to challenge for points and odd podium(s) in between