Alexander Albon Ansusinha, born March 23rd 1996, is a Thai-British driver who races under the flag of Thailand for Williams Racing. He made his first Formula One start for the Scuderia Toro Rosso (now called RB) in 2019 and became the first Thai driver to compete in Formula One since Prince Bira, of the Thai Royal Family, in 1954. After the first half of the 2019 season Albon was promoted to the Red Bull team, replacing an underperforming Pierre Gasly. It was a big step for a rookie, but Albon held his own alongside teammate Max Verstappen, even setting an identical lap time to Verstappen in qualifying for the Japanese Grand Prix. Albon’s future was looking bright. He won the FIA Rookie of the Year award and drove well enough to be retained by Red Bull for 2020. Albon took his first podium, finishing third at the Tuscan Grand Prix, and again landed on the podium in Bahrain. Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough to satisfy Red Bull and Albon lost his race seat for the 2021 season. He had barely been in F1 for two years and it already looked like the end of the road. Red Bull, however, retained him as a reserve and test driver, and despite the disappointment, Albon decided to make the most of it. He used the time to work on his ability to communicate with the engineers and really understand some of the finer points of developing a car. The result was a much more drivable Red Bull, a car that Verstappen won his first championship in. While Albon would be the first to admit that he was only just a small part of it, he felt a certain sense of satisfaction in a job well done. In 2022, a more mature Albon made his comeback, taking his new skills and passion to a race seat at the Williams team where he will stay at least through 2024, helping to develop a team and culture that might help restore Williams to its former glory.
Alex was born at the Portland Hospital in London, England to Nigel and Kankamol Albon. He has a younger brother, Luca, and three younger sisters, Chloe, Zoe and Alicia. His father, Nigel, is a former British driver, competing in the Renault Clio Cup, British Touring Car Championship, the FIA GT Championship and Porsche Carrera Cup Asia, among others. Alex’s mother is from Thailand and ran an exotic car dealership before she found herself in legal trouble. Like most, Alex started karting at a young age with help from his father and, after a few years of accumulating championships in both British and European competitions, he joined the Red Bull Junior Team in 2012. That same year he was promoted to open-wheel racing, eventually placing second behind a young Charles Leclerc in the 2016 GP3 series before moving to Formula 2. In Albon’s second year of Formula 2 he finished third in the championship behind George Russell and Lando Norris. Red Bull had seen Albon’s potential and placed him at the Scuderia Toro Rosso in Formula One the following year.
While it is the goal of every driver to get signed by one of the teams competing at the front of the grid, it can sometimes come too quickly. Most drivers get at least a year or two to settle into Formula One. That was not the case for Albon. He spent half a season at Toro Rosso before being thrown into the pressure cooker at Red Bull. He started out well but took a blow to his confidence towards the end of his first season when he was running in second place behind Verstappen on the penultimate lap of the Brazilian Grand Prix. Lewis Hamilton, on fresher tires, came charging in from behind in an overtaking move that pushed Albon’s Red Bull into a spin. What might have been a 1-2 finish and Albon’s first podium ended in a disappointing fourteenth and a five second time penalty for Hamilton, relegating him to seventh. The following year, 2020, started out much like the previous year had ended, although this time it was Albon trying to pass Hamilton for second place. Again the two cars made contact, Albon was sent into the gravel and Hamilton was awarded another five second penalty. Albon, as a practicing Buddhist, is not one to hold a grudge, and his year out of the drivers seat gave him time to work on his mental game and prepare for a comeback. He also found an opportunity to give back to his mother’s native country of Thailand in the form of supporting the Wat Sakraeo Orphanage. He says for the kids it’s not just about the money coming in, it’s the feeling that somebody is on their side. Well, for Albon, it seems that Karma is on his side in terms of continuing his pursuit of excellence as a Formula One driver and as a human being.