Albon paradox: disappointing qualifying and Haas proved decisive for 7th place
It may sound like a paradox, but Alex Albon’s disappointing qualifying was actually one of the keys to his brilliant comeback drive to 7th place at Monza. The choice of starting tyre played a decisive role, while an unexpected helping hand also came from rivals, as an early pit stop from Haas opened the door for him to return to the top ten and shine once again.
Can a poor qualifying really become the prelude to a starring role in the race? The answer is yes, at least in the case of Alex Albon at Monza. Both Williams drivers had endured a Saturday well below expectations on a circuit that, on paper, should have suited their car. Struggling to bring the tyres into the right performance window for the crucial lap, both FW47 cars were eliminated already in Q2.
Paradoxically, however, starting further back on the grid allowed the Grove-based team to attempt something different on the tactical front, diversifying strategies between its two drivers. Carlos Sainz, the higher-placed Williams driver, started on the medium compound, the “standard” choice adopted by all the front runners. With Alex Albon, instead, the team opted for the hard compound, with the goal of extending the opening stint as much as possible.
It was a logical decision for Williams, but one that required several conditions to work properly. First of all, the hard compound needed to be competitive, something already observed during free practice. Secondly, the race needed a driver capable of keeping the pack tightly bunched, preventing large gaps from forming. That role, as it turned out, was played by Gabriel Bortoleto.
The top speed advantage of the Sauber allowed the Brazilian to defend effectively, forming a compact train of cars behind him, all locked together in the DRS zone. Among those stuck in that group were also the two Williams drivers, sitting in 12th and 13th position after the opening laps. However, as the laps went by, some teams began searching for solutions to break free from the traffic.
That is exactly when Haas came into play. At the time of the first stops, Oliver Bearman was running in 11th place, just outside the points. Hoping to find free air and possibly a better pace to attempt an undercut on the cars ahead, the American team decided to call him in early, bringing him into the pits after around twenty laps.
Out of fear of losing track position to an undercut – despite Pirelli having predicted that it would be ineffective due to low tyre degradation – Bearman’s stop triggered a domino effect. Other drivers who had also started on the medium compound, including Bortoleto, soon pitted to cover off the strategy, which in turn cleared the track for rivals still on the hard compound.
The very low tyre degradation allowed those on the harder compound to push beyond thirty laps without significant performance drop-off. This was a decisive factor that played into Williams’ hands, especially as the FW47 had already shown strong long-run pace on Friday, despite the disappointing qualifying that left both cars out of position on the grid.
Moreover, Bearman’s early pit stop and the resulting cascade effect had another important side-effect: it broke up the pack. After the Williams pit wall instructed Carlos Sainz to yield position to Alex Albon in order to give him clear air, the Anglo-Thai driver suddenly found himself free to push without compromise. At that stage of the race, the hard compound had become faster than the medium, allowing him to fully exploit the strategy.
In essence, from a situation in which Alex Albon had been stuck in a DRS train with no chance to attack, the race scenario flipped completely thanks to Bearman’s early stop. That move opened the way for Williams to execute their plan to perfection, enabling Albon to push aggressively and climb all the way to a superb 7th place finish.
Curiously, the pit stop did not bring Haas the results they had hoped for. One reason was that even the medium tyre still had plenty of life, allowing rival drivers to push on their in-laps without major losses. If the American team had not stopped so early, it is likely that several of their competitors would have stayed out for more laps, reducing Williams’ chances of a strong comeback.
Of course, Alex Albon still had to deliver behind the wheel, and he did so in style. Once in clean air, he unleashed impressive pace, strong enough to catch Andrea Kimi Antonelli. Looking down the classification, it is also noteworthy that Isack Hadjar, driving for Racing Bulls, managed to get back into the top ten by using exactly the same strategy, despite having started from the pit lane. This underlines how, under the right circumstances, that tactical approach can really make the difference in staging a comeback.
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