Albon puts timeline on Williams podium fight

Williams driver Alex Albon has put a timeline on when he thinks the team will be able to fight for podiums in Formula 1.

The team has failed to capture its glory years in recent seasons, having dropped to the back of the grid in the last car regulation cycle.

Their last race win was in 2012 at the Spanish Grand Prix with Pastor Maldonado, while they have not stood on the podium since the 2021 Belgian Grand Prix which lasted three laps under Safety Car.

Since the ground effect cars were reintroduced in 2022, Williams has fared better with Albon at the wheel having scored enough points to finish seventh last year, but with new Team Principal James Vowles at the helm, they have bigger ambitions to achieve podiums and get back to winning ways.

Albon: A nice Team Principal relationship takes time

With the news that Lewis Hamilton will leave Mercedes to join Ferrari at the end of 2024, it has prompted fresh speculation that Albon could leave Williams.

Albon is staying focused on their ambitions, but believes they will need to wait before they can challenge for positions further up the grid.

"It's a bit of a field to be fair. James [Vowles] is extremely involved and he always keeps me up to date with the progress of the team, the areas we need to work on, the areas that I could help him improve," Albon told media, including RacingNews365.

"He's very open in that sense, which is obviously a very nice thing to have. A nice relationship to have with your Team Principal is going to take time.

"I think that 2026/2027, that's the period of time where I think we're going to consistently fight for podiums and obviously that's quite far away.

"I just have to be happy with the journey that we're on and the progress that we're making. That's pretty clear of where I see the team and where I want the team to be. I'll be assisting in pushing for that as long as I can."