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Red Bull team principal Christian Horner admits that he was impressed by Alexander Albon after his debut weekend at the energy drink squad.
Albon was promoted to the team during the summer break following a disappointing first half to the season for Pierre Gasly, who received the drive at the end of the 2018 season.
The Thai-British driver started Sunday's Grand Prix from towards the back of the grid, taking on new power unit parts that exceeded the season quota.
However, he battled his way up to fifth place, leading Horner to commend his efforts, stating that he dialled himself in by not making any errors.
"Alex has impressed me all weekend with his approach, his feedback, and his pace," Horner. "In the race, I think he did a very mature job.
"In the first half of the race we weren't quite as competitive on the harder tyre as we were on the softer tyre. But he didn't make any silly mistakes or take any silly risks. He just dialled himself in.
"We said you'll find the car comes alive in the second half of the race and it certainly did with him and his moves.
"We know Daniel is a tough racer, and his move on Daniel, his other passes, his move past Sergio on the last lap, were extremely impressive. To go from P18 to P5 was a very good start."
Horner added that Gasly, who is now back racing at Toro Rosso, was in the "right frame of mind" throughout the weekend, as he too impressed to take home two points.
"Having spoken to Pierre over the weekend as well, he seems to have exactly the right frame of mind getting into the Toro Rosso. He recognises there are still opportunities to him and he certainly seems to be approaching it with the right mindset."
Grand Prix of Belgium
C. Sainz jr
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Replies (6)
Login to replyf1fan0101
Posts: 1,804
as as i... great drive
mcbhargav
Posts: 1,332
Kvyat made his case heard as well. I would call it 1-1. BTW, Hulk has no chance ( especially for TR seat). Marko prefers a fast, fearless, and instinctive racer.
calle.itw
Posts: 8,527
I legit think Gasly is happier at TRH, even if he don't realize it quite yet. As for Albon: so far so good. I know some where not impressed by him, but to overtake nearly 12 cars with a "higher drag than most others"-setup, and in a car he hasn't been trained for and isn't familiar with, is decent stuff. We'll see how he pans out in the races to come.
Ram Samartha
Posts: 1,172
I think he's going to be putting some pressure on Max who has had a pretty easy go of it so far this season as far as pressure from his teammate. Albon knows he can beat VER so it will be fun to watch how the rest of the season shapes up at RBR.
f1ski
Posts: 726
Better than Verstappen? wouldn't that be something
calle.itw
Posts: 8,527
I'm not sure yet, I feel Albon will likely be the more kinda consistent type, but I am carefully optmistic. At the very least I enjoy reading his comments, he is a pleasant chap.