Williams seemed set for one more tough marketing campaign as incoming crew principal James Vowles launched into an enormous rebuild of the long-time backmarker.
Whereas that course of will take a number of years, Williams is preventing over scraps with its FW45, which is missing aerodynamic load in comparison with its rivals.
However identical to its predecessor, the 2023 automotive’s low-drag traits additionally supplied the crew with some alternatives to attain large on low-downforce circuits.
And extra so than final yr, when Albon was restricted to simply 4 factors throughout the entire marketing campaign, the Anglo-Thai driver has managed to capitalise on his automotive’s strengths.
Following a solitary level in Bahrain’s opening race, Albon grabbed six factors for seventh place in Canada, and backed that up with one other 4 factors in Silverstone.
With rookie team-mate Logan Sargeant nonetheless point-less, Alon has single-handedly dragged Williams as much as a joint seventh with Haas on 11 factors, three extra factors than the Grove scored all of final season.
Albon admitted that 2023 had gone significantly better than he had anticipated. “Truthfully, I’ve to say it has been a extremely good yr for us to this point,” he stated.
“I do not wish to say an excessive amount of however it looks like the best way that we began in Bahrain and the place we’re proper now, we have made nice progress.
“Possibly not as a lot because the McLarens, however on our facet, we’re not off course.
Alex Albon, Williams Racing
Photograph by: Motorsport Photographs
“We’re seventh proper now within the constructors’ championship, tied. In the event you had instructed me or anybody from the crew that in the beginning of the yr, we’d have bitten your arm off, so it’s going properly.
“Clearly, we simply want to remain targeted and maintain going at it. However I am certain, as a crew, we are able to take the summer season break off and luxuriate in it and are available again refreshed.”
Williams produced a sizeable improve for June’s Canadian Grand Prix, that includes a brand new flooring and sidepod design.
That has allowed the crew to be barely extra aggressive on tracks that do not sometimes swimsuit its automotive, with Albon taking an unlikely eleventh on the twisty Hungaroring, albeit benefitting from a daring undercut technique.
Albon says having a automotive that’s extra more likely to problem for factors on any given race weekend, reasonably than simply excelling at a few of the calendar’s low-downforce outliers, has given the crew a lift of confidence.
“It is simply nice going to each race weekend with the ability to combat for factors, and being in that space the place you are feeling such as you go to each weekend understanding that, it simply builds confidence and motivation for everybody within the crew,” he added.
“So, I’d say we’re having fun with these moments, and hopefully we are able to we are able to rating some factors.”
