“Leader” Alex Albon has the potential to become F1 world champion, says Williams boss

Williams team principal James Vowles believes Alex Albon has the skillset to be an F1 world champion in the future.

Albon returned to racing as a permanent driver in 2022 with Williams. While his first season did not carry much triumph, he did manage to bring the team up from the bottom of the championship in 2023. The team, led by Vowles in 2023, finished in seventh place with 28 points. Out of these, Albo scored 27.

Talking about Alex Albon in a conversation with AMuS, Vowles stated that Albon has changed much since he started the season and carries much more confidence:

"The Alex you see today is different than the Alex when he was at Red Bull or the Alex at the start of the season. He still lacked belief in himself. He has it now."

"He is happy, he is a leader, he has self-confidence, he works in a structured manner and sets the direction. This all sounds easy. But the simplest is often the hardest."

Vowles further added that Albon coped with the car brilliantly. He feels that any other driver on the grid would struggle to drive the Williams but Albon has been getting the most out of it.

"You never know how good one driver is compared to another until you put them in the same car at the same time as the other. If other drivers had to drive a Williams tomorrow, they would probably struggle."

"Today I know from Alex that he always gets the most out of the car that is available to him. And every time you put pressure on him, he stands up to the pressure."

These abilities that Alex Albon carries make Vowles feel that the 27-year-old can be the world champion in the future:

"And he copes with a car that is difficult to drive. This experience can be an advantage for him. For me, Alex has the skills to become world champion one day. I mean that honestly."

Although Albon has been on the podium twice in the time he spent with Red Bull earlier, he still misses out on a victory.

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Alex Albon reportedly wants to break away from Williams

It was recently reported that the 27-year-old wanted to walk away from the team. His multi-year contract, signed in 2022, keeps him tied with the team until at least the end of the 2025 season (according to ESPN).

Despite that, it was also reported that earlier in 2023, Albon was approached by rival F1 teams but he denied them. Furthermore, another one of his earlier statements mentioned his willingness to stay with the team for a longer period.

Under the management of former Mercedes director James Vowles, Williams might have a promising future and that could be a motivation for Albon to stay with the team.