Alex Albon Reflects on Early Qualifying Exit at Bahrain Grand Prix

Williams driver Alex Albon has shared his thoughts on his early exit from qualifying at the Bahrain Grand Prix, suggesting that a timing error may have played a part in his disappointing result. The Thai-British racer wasn’t alone in cutting it fine, as Red Bull drivers Max Verstappen and Yuki Tsunoda also left their final flying laps until the last moment.

Albon’s Qualifying Woes

Speaking to Sky Sports F1 after his early exit, Albon explained, ‘We messed up on… Well, we need to review it, but we went out very late. I had to overtake 4 or 5 cars on my out lap to try and get a lap in, and then, we were sitting in the pit lane for a long time with the blankets off while all the cars were coming out onto the pit lane.’ This delay meant that Albon started his final lap at an incorrect temperature, which ultimately proved costly.

Albon continued, ‘So, we started the lap maybe 15 degrees too cold where we should have been, and then that was it really.’ The Williams driver acknowledged the fine margins in Formula One racing, stating, ‘The margins here are so small. We talk about it every week and we just didn’t execute the right plan.’

Albon’s Expectations for the Race

When asked about the potential of his car this weekend, Albon pointed to the performance of Carlos Sainz, who progressed through to Q3 and out-qualified his teammate for the first time this season with a P8 start. Albon added, ‘I think Carlos will put it where it should be. He’s been good this weekend, and I think we’re fairly closely matched. So, I think close to Q3, but it was always going to be tight.’

Albon also highlighted the importance of strategy for the race, stating, ‘Our race pace was good. Our strategy is going to be important. This isn’t going to be a Suzuka, so there will be a few laps, a few different strategies. We’ll see which one’s the right one for us.’