Alex Albon has had a mixed time in Formula 1 since making his debut for Toro Rosso in 2019, finally finding a home at Williams.
The London-born Thai driver has driven very consistently since joining the Grove team at the start of 2022, leading Williams forward into the midfield.
Before moving to Williams, Albon was parachuted into the Red Bull team halfway through his rookie season alongside Max Verstappen.
He suffered alongside the Dutchman before losing the drive at the end of 2020 to Sergio Perez as Albon failed to maximise the Red Bull car at most events.
Leaving Red Bull also left Albon without a seat in 2021, so he raced in the DTM whilst on the verge of leaving Formula 1 behind and joining IndyCar or Formula E.
Now, Albon has explained to Motorsport-Total the key reason why decided to return to F1 and look for a drive at the highest level, rather than move to another championship.
Alex Albon reveals a ‘lucky’ conversation with Jost Capito stopped him from moving to IndyCar or Formula E
Albon was on the verge of moving away from F1 and potentially racing in IndyCar after taking a trip to Indianapolis but nothing materialised for the future.
The Thai driver also held talks with some Formula E teams to enquire about any openings.
It would have marked his long-awaited debut in the all-electric series as Albon signed with Nissan to partner Sebastien Buemi in the 2018/19 season before pulling a U-turn to race F1 with Toro Rosso.
Formula E has been a very competitive championship, but Toro Rosso went looking for a driver after Brendan Hartley left at the end of 2018.
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A potential move to Formula E then returned for Albon after leaving Red Bull, but speaking with Jost Capito eventually convinced him to return to F1 with Williams.
Capito was Williams’ team principal in 2021 and was key to Albon keeping a foot in the door in Formula 1 after his difficult time at Red Bull.
Albon said: “I had a plan B. I went to Indianapolis back in June to look around the IndyCar Series and started talking to the Formula E teams to see what was available there. Luckily, I then had a conversation with Jost and we got on really well from the start.”
Both IndyCar and Formula E would have been challenging for Alex Albon
Both IndyCar and Formula E have become increasingly competitive in recent years and have provided close racing, so would have been challenging for Albon had he joined either.
Formula E requires a unique driving style on street circuits as the margins are so fine, and the sole focus on energy management is also very unique.
IndyCar may have been more familiar to Albon as the series races on permanent circuits as well as street courses. However, ovals can be difficult for drivers who haven’t sharpened their skills on them in junior categories which would have been the case for Albon.
Oval racing is a key part of being competitive in IndyCar, especially at the Indy 500, and Louis Foster could be vital to RLL’s improvement on ovals when he joins them in 2025.