Alex Albon is the front runner in landing Red Bull Drive for 2020. Christian Horner admits it is “his place to lose” after impressing with the team since the middle of the season.
Albon replaced the struggling Pierre Gasly in his F1 rookie campaign in August, with the Frenchman returning to the Toro Rosso junior team. Since then he has finished in the top six in all seven races and scored 68 points – 14 more than a Stern team-mate Max Verstappen in the same period.
Red Bull is still keeping its options open and has yet to confirm who will partner with Verstappen next year and who will fill the vacant Toro Rosso spots, but seems to make Albon a favorite.
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“It’s your place to really lose,” said Horner Sky Sports F1 in Texas. “He’s got his bum in right now and he’s doing a good job.
“We still have time until the end of the year. All drivers are under contract for next year so we don’t have to rush – but everyone has been impressed with the work he’s done so far. “
Albon’s only competition for the ride appears to be Gasly, and Daniil Kvyat, who was previously also left out by Red Bull, will stay with Toro Rosso.
Red Bull has ruled out a move for the available Nico Hülkenberg.
“Of course it would be nice to have an answer, but I’m not too worried about that,” Albon told Sky F1’s Paul Di Resta.
“I’m still comfortable enough to know that I’ll still be in F1 next year. We’ll see how to do it. “
Since joining Red Bull, Albon has scored 14 points more than Verstappen. Image: Dean MouhtaropoulosSource: Getty Images
Hamilton, Rosberg’s praise for Albon
Although his advantage over Verstappen is a bit skewed – Albon only got one step ahead when Max survived compromised races and only qualified up when the Dutchman had a starting penalty – his achievements, especially his comeback drives, were praised .
Lewis Hamilton, for example, said Albon had a “bright future” and that he hoped Red Bull didn’t “spit out” the London-born Thai driver.
After the GP in the USA, where Albon recovered from fifth to fifth place, the Sky F1 experts were also impressed by the 23-year-old Red Bull youngster:
Martin Brundle: “All of his movements were clean. It didn’t get scratchy. He didn’t start trying too hard, that’s a good sign for him. All he has to do is put together an entire race and hold onto Max’s gearbox or even under his nose. “
Nico Rosberg: “I think he’s doing enough right now to be the favorite for this seat. But there is no need to speed it up for them.
“Alex is doing a really good job because [you should] Never underestimate the difficulty of suddenly falling into this place in the middle of the season on your first season. New car, new team, everything new, it’s so difficult to get up to speed. “
This article was originally published by Sky Sports and reproduced with permission.
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