Alex Denied Points by Electrical Issue at Silverstone
Alexander Albon was unfortunate to miss out on a points paying finish at the British Grand Prix, following an electrical issue with the car in the closing stages of the race.
Alex returned to Silverstone, a circuit where he took victory last season in the FIA Formula 2 Feature Race and has had a great record around the historic venue.
He fully displayed his credentials around Silverstone by putting his STR14 consistently in the Top 10 throughout all the Free Practice sessions during Friday and Saturday morning, before putting in an excellent qualifying performance to advance into Q3 and line-up 9th on the grid for the British Grand Prix.
Alex continued his strong long-run prace shown on Friday into the race on Sunday, as he cemented himself in the points paying positions from the start of the race. He made his one and only pitstop ofthe race on Lap 13, running the Hard tyres on the planned one-stop strategy. The option of a two-stop arised after high tyre wear became a factor in the race, however an issue with the car meant the car was electrical 'live', meaning the car could not be touched by the mechanics due to a risk of electric shock.
This forced Alex to stay out one a single stop strategy, being unable to pit. Sadly the tyre wear meant despite his best efforts to hang onto 10th position, he was passed by Lando Norris and Nico Hulkenberg in the closing stages to deny him what would have been a well deserved points finish, after the pace he had shown all weekend.
Alexander Albon (Car 23):
"I was happy with Quali! We’ve been in the top 10 this weekend but we knew the others would turn it up in Qualifying, our balance just got better and better through the weekend and it came together. After a tough couple of races, it’s really good to be back into Q3.
I’m really happy with the car and I love this track, the car has been feeling good all weekend and when the track started to get more grip, I felt more comfortable and was able to get more performance from the car.
However, it wasn’t an easy race for me managing the tyres. When the safety car came out some drivers got lucky, others didn’t. We had an issue with the car where we couldn’t pit or touch the car, so we had to stay out while others around us pitted which ultimately cost us a strong points finish. It was a frustrating race, but that’s the way it goes sometimes."
Germany is the next stop on the 2019 Formula One World Championship calendar, taking place at the Hockenheimring on the 26-28th July.
Press Release Content: Scuderia Toro Rosso
Media Content: Red Bull Content Pool