Villeneuve Claims Alex Albon Is Clinging on to Red Bull Seat “Only Because of His Passport”

Alex Albon suffered yet another disappointing outing at the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, as his miserable 2020 season seems to be a never-ending story. Considering his recent performances, Jacques Villeneuve did not hold back from criticizing the Red Bull driver.

The former world champion expressed his opinion on how Albon has fared over this season. “Albon is the worst second driver Red Bull has ever had. He does not deserve his place in the team,” he said.

One might wonder why Red Bull are backing their current number 2 driver. Well, there could be a possible reason behind that. Chaleo Yoovidhya, a Thai businessman, is the co-creator of the Red Bull energy drink.

Hence, his Thai origin might be one of the primary reason as to why Red Bull are reluctant to show Albon the door.

Villeneuve, too, pointed out the same. “He is only there because of his passport. That is why he is protected,” the Canadian said. “He is protected by the team management and is always trusted.”

Pierre Gasly was replaced by Albon midway through the 2019 season in F1. Considering how things are progressing at the moment, Red Bull seem to have gotten tired of Albon.

Hence, he too might face the same fate as the Frenchman and could be demoted to their sister team, AlphaTauri, before the start of 2021.

Alex Albon is getting worse in Red Bull: Villeneuve

With just four races to go, the Canadian felt that Albon might not be able to bring out the kind of performances Red Bull are demanding over the rest of this season. “The truth is that he does not have the level that a Red Bull driver should have,” he said.

Albon, over his entire time with Red Bull, never managed to understand his car, as he eventually failed to figure out the right setup during each and every race weekend.

Hence, Red Bull will plan to get rid of Albon and for a change, opt for an experienced driver like Sergio Perez or Nico Hulkenberg.

However, they need to get the signing done by this season, as either of those drivers will be hoping to spend enough time at the wheel and understand the car before starting to develop it for the 2022 season.

This could be a viable option for Red Bull, as even the 24-year-old is not looking like he’s enjoying this time with them. Of course, he is slower than Max Verstappen, to that an extent that he was lapped by Max on several occasions.

Hence, Albon will be hoping to get himself back into his former team, AlphaTauri. The question is, will he be able to regain his old form back in the AlphaTauri?