Alex Albon has been handed a three-place grid drop for next month's Australian Grand Prix as a punishment for colliding with Lance Stroll in Saudi Arabia. The two drivers came together at Turn 1 at the Jeddah Corniche Circuit during the final laps of an eventful Saudi Arabian GP. The stewards summoned both Albon and Stroll to Race Control after the encounter, where they heard from both drivers before deciding that blame for the incident lay "wholly or predominantly" with the Williams man. As a result, Albon has seen two penalty points added to his racing licence and will start next month's Australian GP three places down on where qualifies.
Albon says he "had to go for it" in battle with Stroll
The incident put an end to Albon's race, at a time when he was looking to break into the top 10 positions, with Fernando Alonso, Daniel Ricciardo, Nicholas Latifi, Valtteri Bottas and Yuki Tsunoda all retiring. "We were trying to fight our way into the points at the end and I went for the move with Lance," said Albon of his battle with the Aston Martin racer. "He made a strong defence and, unfortunately, we made contact. "We had to retire due to the puncture, but the points were almost there, and we had to go for it."
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