Alexander Albon promoted to Red Bull in rookie season, as Gasly is dropped following disappointing start to the year
Photo: Motorsport Images
Alexander Albon has been promoted to the Red Bull team, and Pierre Gasly dropped, the team announced this morning.
Albon will partner Max Verstappen for the rest of the Formula 1 season, starting at the next race in Spa at the end of the month.
The Thai national has been promoted from the sister Toro Rosso team in his rookie season after a series of strong performances. He will be replaced by Gasly who has failed to impress in a race-winning car.
Gasly only has a third of the points of Verstappen in the drivers’ championship and was lapped by his team-mate in Austria and Hungary.
Albon now has the opportunity to stake his claim for the seat permanently, with Red Bull stating that the team will evaluate his performance with a view to the 2020 season.
“Red Bull are in the unique position of having four talented Formula 1 drivers under contract who can be rotated between Aston Martin Red Bull Racing and Toro Rosso,” the team said in a press release.
“The Team will use the next nine races to evaluate Alex’s performance in order to make an informed decision as to who will drive alongside Max in 2020.”
Related content
Albon, 23, was born and raised in London, winning British karting championship, and the World Karting Championship before moving to Formula Renault and up the single-seater ladder.
After a third-place finish in the 2018 Formula 2 championship, Albon was set to race for Nissan in Formula E before getting the call for the Toro Rosso drive.
He currently sits 15th in the drivers’ championship with 16 points, 11 behind team-mate Daniil Kvyat, who was also dropped by the senior team three years ago in favour of Verstappen.
“Everyone at Aston Martin Red Bull Racing looks forward to welcoming Alex to the Team and supporting him during the next phase of his F1 career,” the team said.
Wilson Fittipaldi's F1 career is overshadowed by the success of his brother Emerson, but the driver and team-owner deserves greater recognition, says Matt Bishop
Haas was an F1 team transformed in 2024: after finishing dead last the previous year, it hauled its way to the front of the midfield. An achievement that you might think deserves an F1 team of the year accolade
Here's everything you need to know about Isack Hadjar, the flying junior who has been announced as an F1 driver for Red Bull's sister team, Racing Bulls
All seats in the F1 2025 driver line-ups are now filled, with Isack Hadjar the last to be confirmed for Racing Bulls. After a long silly season in the F1 transfer market, here are the contracts in place and the confirmed deals