Albon served as Red Bull’s reserve and test driver this season after being deposed late last year to make way for Sergio Perez on the team as Max Verstappen’s team-mate.
Red Bull team principal Christian Horner announced last week at Spa that efforts are being made to find Albon for next year, with Williams and Alfa Romeo being the two open teams.
Albon’s return to the starting grid would be an important part of the silly season in the driver market, which is also awaiting an announcement from Mercedes to define George Russell and Valtteri Bottas’ future plans.
On Friday at Zandvoort, Horner said there was “quite a lot of interest” in Albon for next year and that Red Bull “will do everything” to get him back on the grid next year.
“I hope nothing prevents him from taking advantage of one of these opportunities,” said Horner.
“He’s a talented driver. Subject to a move by George, now Kimi [Raikkonen] retiring opens up opportunities. So I’m sure that will resolve itself in the next week or so. “
Horner ruled out Albon’s return to AlphaTauri, for which he made his debut in 2019 when the team was known as Toro Rosso, and confirmed that both Williams and Alfa Romeo had inquired about his services.
“We are looking for external teams,” said Horner.
“So Williams and Alfa have both expressed an interest. And yes, we look forward to seeing him drive in Formula 1 again. Hopefully this can be resolved in the next few days. “
When asked if he would be willing to lose Albon of the Red Bull family if he joined a Mercedes or Ferrari-related team next year, Horner said Red Bull would “do whatever it takes to make sure that he’ll be back in a racing seat next year “. . “
Horner added: “There are always obstacles. He’s a boy who deserves a chance in Formula 1 next year and we’re doing our best to help him make that happen.
“At the moment there are good discussions. Hopefully this can be resolved in the coming days. “
Nyck de Vries Mercedes FE Champion
Photo by: Steve Etherington / Motorsport Images
Albon’s future appears to be directly linked to the placement of Formula E Champion Nyck de Vries, who will be on the F1 grid next year as Mercedes tries to secure him a spot on the grid.
Mercedes-F1 boss Toto Wolff said that it is “about Alex Albon”, who in his opinion deserves “a place” in Formula 1.
“He’s a really good boy, and he’s probably the main protagonist in the moving chairs,” said Wolff.
“So Nyck has a guaranteed seat in Formula E with us. And I mean, as I said, I wish he was in Formula 1, but I don’t want to lose him for our Formula E campaign.”
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