How Alex Albon is quietly having his career-best F1 season in 2025
- Chloe Buckley
- Sep 17
- 4 min read
Written by Chloe Buckley, Edited by Meghana Sree
Through six years of turbulence, continuous setbacks and bottom-10 finishes, Alex Albon’s Formula One career has been full of ups and downs. From being dropped by Red Bull in 2020 to rebuilding his reputation alongside Williams, his path towards the front of the grid has certainly not been the smoothest, but the 2025 season has so far shown Albon become the complete driver he has been tipped to be.
The 2025 Formula One season has been a massive step forward for Alex Albon and Williams. A team which was once a backmarker is now firmly leading the mid-field fight and their turnaround is one of the standout stories of the year.
Williams are currently sitting fifth in the Constructors’ standings, their best position since 2017. The consistency has picked up and so have the points thanks to Albon’s impressive performances throughout the year thus far.
Following the Italian Grand Prix last weekend, Williams have now accumulated 86 points so far this year, which is more than what they scored across an entire seven-year span from 2018 to 2024 (84 points).
Albon has been central to this resurgence as he has collected 70 of those 86 points, scoring in 11 of 16 races. He currently holds seventh in the Drivers’ standings which is on par with his final position in 2020 with Red Bull.
Despite fierce competition on the grid, especially in the tightly packed mid-field, Albon has risen to become one of the most reliable of the pack.
This reliability has been built on strong qualifying sessions. Albon has reached Q3 in eight sessions of 16 rounds, consistently putting himself in a position to score points.
On Sundays, he has regularly been able to convert his starting positions into points, out-performing his teammate Carlos Sainz in race results by 11-4 (excluding Austria as both drivers retired).
Although Sainz hasn’t had the most luck since moving to Williams, his influence is significant as he has proven to be a huge help to the team.
At the opening round in Australia, Sainz was a vital part in helping Albon achieve P5. Due to crashing out in Lap 2 of the race, Sainz sat back in the garage to help with Albon’s strategy calls throughout the race and even made a great call for him to pit for intermediate tyres that helped him secure a remarkable P5 finish.
A new-found confidence in the car has also been essential to Albon’s journey this season. The FW47 is more stable, predictable and balanced compared to the last several years at Williams. The car allows Albon to push further than he has been able to before with the team, without going over the limit.
The consistency with the car has evidently led to the team’s best results in years and has given Albon an extra boost to attack in qualifying and races.
Even though Albon is on track to his best season in F1 yet, he has still had several low points. Midway through the year, he suffered three consecutive retirements, a run of races that could have easily disturbed his momentum. Racing incidents, technical issues and an ounce of bad luck all played their part.
But crucially, Albon didn’t back down. Following the three DNFs, he redeemed himself by scoring points in four of the five next races, showing his strong resilience and racing mentality.
Albon isn’t any stranger to facing struggles in F1. His past six years of experience in the sport has been full of ups and downs. From being promoted to Red Bull Racing then being dropped the next year, then joining Williams and having a rocky few seasons there – to now, where he is performing the best he has in F1.
Albon has never let any poor performance or rough patch get in his way. He has the strong mentality that all F1 drivers require, and because he never gave up, it has rewarded him with his career-best season so far, with eight rounds still to go.
The 2025 campaign has been transformative for Albon’s reputation. For years he has been viewed as a talented and promising prospect, but too inconsistent to be a top team leader. Moreover, his mettle was set to be tested with Sainz’s arrival to the team, a proven race-winner compared to the inexperienced teammates he’d faced before in Williams.
This year, Albon has been rewriting that perception and has clearly edged out Sainz. He has become the cornerstone for Williams: reliable, calm and capable of delivering consistently.
In a car that on paper shouldn’t be fighting as high on the grid as it is, Albon has scored 70 points and is seventh in the standings, clearly the best of the rest and putting in a performance that won’t be forgotten.
Looking ahead, Albon’s 2025 campaign could be the launchpad for the next phase of his career. He already has a multi-year contract with Williams locked in, giving him the opportunity to keep growing and pushing forward with the team.
For the first time in his F1 career, a team is building around him. He isn’t just surviving in F1, but he's proving that he belongs here by thriving and shaping his own future.
