A Look Back: Netherlands

Revisiting Alex's previous trip to Zandvoort

Published

21 Aug 2024

Est Reading Time

2 min

Alex will be hoping to conjure the spirit of 2023 at this weekend’s Dutch Grand Prix.

He enjoyed a race to remember at Zandvoort last year — finishing P8 to secure four points for Williams.

The race’s early exchanges were hampered by heavy rain, as Albono dropped a number of places from his P4 starting position in the challenging conditions.

However, the track began to favour Alex’s soft tyres by Lap 8, allowing him to start climbing the rankings.

He did so with aplomb, rising from P15 to an impressive sixth-place, until rain once again had an impact on proceedings — requiring a pit stop during Lap 61 that saw him return to the track in ninth spot.

A late red flag then led to a significant pause, before AA23 overtook George Russell from his P9 position to end the race in an impressive P8.

Reflecting on a dramatic day in North Holland, Alex said:

“You could argue we should’ve pitted earlier at the start of the race, but we stuck to our guns and it worked for us with tyre management, managing for 40-odd laps on the softs.

“You can only do that with a car that’s good and it felt strong all weekend.

“It was very easy to control the front and rear degradation, just with tools and driving, always able to shift the balance where I needed it to be.”

And Albono summed up an enjoyable visit to Zandvoort, saying:

“It’s been our strongest weekend yet and the best I’ve felt in the car in my time at Williams, so there’s so many positives to take from here.”

The challenge for Alex will now be to repeat or better last year’s display, at this season’s edition of the Dutch Grand Prix.

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