Williams Racing announced on Wednesday that Alex Albon signed a multi-year contract with the team for “2023 and beyond.”
For Formula One Twitter, some may have paused after Tuesday’s Alpine-Oscar Piastri fiasco to see if Albon would confirm the deal. And he did, likely providing much laughter along the way with the method of confirmation—a tweet eerily similar to Piastri’s denial.
“I understand that, with my agreement, Williams Racing have put out a press release this afternoon that I am driving for them next year. This is right and I have signed a contract with Williams for 2023. I will be driving for Williams next year.”
Albon returned to the F1 grid this season, filling the vacant seat left by George Russell when he joined Mercedes. Red Bull released Albon from his contract after the 2020 campaign but he was retained as a reserve and test driver.
The 26-year-old has tallied all of Williams’ points this season, including fighting his way from P20 to finish 10th in Australia and a ninth place finish at the inaugural Miami Grand Prix in May. “The team is pushing hard to progress, and I am really motivated to continue this journey and further develop our learnings together,” Albon said, in part, in the official announcement of his deal.
“Alex is a tremendous driver and valued member of Williams Racing, so we’re thrilled to be able to confirm we will be working with him on a long-term basis,” team principal Jost Capito said. “Alex brings a great blend of skill and insightful learnings that will help bring the team greater success in the future. He’s a fierce competitor, has proved a popular and loyal team member and we are delighted that he will provide a stable base for us to continue to develop in this new F1 car era.”
It remains unknown at this time who the other F1 driver for the legendary British team will be, as Nicholas Latifi’s contract is up at the end of the season.
Albon’s news is the latest in a hectic silly season. Last Thursday, Sebastian Vettel announced that he will retire from Formula One at the end of the season. On Monday, Aston Martin confirmed Fernando Alonso would race for them in 2023, leaving an open seat at Alpine. On Tuesday, Alpine said Piastri would be a part of the ’23 F1 driver lineup alongside Esteban Ocon, but the 21-year-old said on Twitter hours later, “I understand that, without my agreement, Alpine F1 have put out a press release late this afternoon that I am driving for them next year. This is wrong and I have not signed a contract with Alpine for 2023. I will not be driving for Alpine next year.”
