76 GP RACING APRIL 2020
strengthened the argument that he should have
been given at least another year to develop away
from the glare ofthe Class A spotlight. When
Ricciardo walked, Red Bull eschewed recalling
Carlos Sainz from his Renault loan in favour ofa
gamble on Gasly.
The following summer Red Bull made another
decisive call: to drop Gasly in favour of Albon
after his absence from the fight at the front cost
Verstappen victory against Hamilton in Hungary.
Albon does not have any assurances beyond
2020 – and as history shows,even completing
the full year isn’t guaranteed if he doesn’t
perform. But he insists team principal Christian
Horner and Red Bull advisor
HelmutMarko haven’t issued a list
of targets they expect him to hit
before his future isconfirmed.
“I’d say it’s just [about]
continuation,” explains Albon.
“I hold very high standards for
myself and first of all the person
who is not happy with me,isme.
They know that, so it’s very much
that they know areas [whereI
know I can improve]. Theywant to
see improvement – that’s the main
thing. And I am improving. That’s
really it. There’s no set targets – and [with that]
you just addpressure for no reason. It’s kind of
letting me do my ownthing and letting me focus
on myself, and it will come.”
Albon has recently moved to Monaco (“Just
getting out of the family house – I do miss the
laundry and the food!” he jokes). This brings himcloser into Verstappen’s orbit, after the pair were
karting rivals before histeam-mate’s sudden rise
to F1. But it’s not enough just to get close toa
driver that many feel will go onto be a multiple
world champion – judging by Red Bull’s ruthless
recent history, at least.
This season will bring targets andexpect ation –
even ifnoone within theRed Bull camp israis ing
them in public.So, as his ownharshest critic,
here’s Albon’splan to hang on to hisC lass A seat.
Gently but firmly, he says: “For me it’s not very
much like ‘I want to be here, by Spa Iwant to be
blah-blah’. “It’s very much ‘OK, what areas doI
need to work on, am I feeling like I’m improving
them, and if not, why am I not?’
It’s very much ‘what can we do
to improve that’. Things like
that – just kind of ‘I know ifI
get these little things creased
out, the re sults will come’.
“And that’s really how
I’m going into the year–
short-term minded in that
sense. It’s about very much
looking at myself.”
Albon is no stranger to
career pressure, since his junior
career was rarely guaranteed to
go beyond theseas on he was embarking on. So in
that respect, things must feel somewhat familiar.
But to ease the burden and satisfy notoriously
demandingbosses, early success is a mustfor
Albon in 2020: perhaps more than any other
organisation on the grid, this one lives by the
mantra of onwards and upwards – or out.Furtherimprovementand
integrationintotheteamare
Albon’sinitialaimsfor2020“I HOLD VERY
HIGHSTANDARDS
FOR MYSELF AND
FIRST OF ALL THE
PERSON WHO IS
NOT HAPPY WITH
ME,ISME”
76 GP RACING APRIL 2020
strengthened the argument that he should have
been given at least another year to develop away
from the glare ofthe Class A spotlight. When
Ricciardo walked, Red Bull eschewed recalling
Carlos Sainz from his Renault loan in favour ofa
gamble on Gasly.
The following summer Red Bull made another
decisive call: to drop Gasly in favour of Albon
after his absence from the fight at the front cost
Verstappen victory against Hamilton in Hungary.
Albon does not have any assurances beyond
2020 – and as history shows,even completing
the full year isn’t guaranteed if he doesn’t
perform. But he insists team principal Christian
Horner and Red Bull advisor
HelmutMarko haven’t issued a list
of targets they expect him to hit
before his future isconfirmed.
“I’d say it’s just [about]
continuation,” explains Albon.
“I hold very high standards for
myself and first of all the person
who is not happy with me,isme.
They know that, so it’s very much
that they know areas [whereI
know I can improve]. Theywant to
see improvement – that’s the main
thing. And I am improving. That’s
really it. There’s no set targets – and [with that]
you just addpressure for no reason. It’s kind of
letting me do my ownthing and letting me focus
on myself, and it will come.”
Albon has recently moved to Monaco (“Just
getting out of the family house – I do miss the
laundry and the food!” he jokes). This brings himcloser into Verstappen’s orbit, after the pair were
karting rivals before histeam-mate’s sudden rise
to F1. But it’s not enough just to get close toa
driver that many feel will go onto be a multiple
world champion – judging by Red Bull’s ruthless
recent history, at least.
This season will bring targets andexpect ation –
even ifnoone within theRed Bull camp israis ing
them in public.So, as his ownharshest critic,
here’s Albon’splan to hang on to hisC lass A seat.
Gently but firmly, he says: “For me it’s not very
much like ‘I want to be here, by Spa Iwant to be
blah-blah’. “It’s very much ‘OK, what areas doI
need to work on, am I feeling like I’m improving
them, and if not, why am I not?’
It’s very much ‘what can we do
to improve that’. Things like
that – just kind of ‘I know ifI
get these little things creased
out, the re sults will come’.
“And that’s really how
I’m going into the year–
short-term minded in that
sense. It’s about very much
looking at myself.”
Albon is no stranger to
career pressure, since his junior
career was rarely guaranteed to
go beyond theseas on he was embarking on. So in
that respect, things must feel somewhat familiar.
But to ease the burden and satisfy notoriously
demandingbosses, early success is a mustfor
Albon in 2020: perhaps more than any other
organisation on the grid, this one lives by the
mantra of onwards and upwards – or out.Furtherimprovementand
integrationintotheteamare
Albon’sinitialaimsfor2020“I HOLD VERY
HIGHSTANDARDS
FOR MYSELF AND
FIRST OF ALL THE
PERSON WHO IS
NOT HAPPY WITH
ME,ISME”