Alexander Albon goes into the final race of the 2020 Formula 1 season in Abu Dhabi knowing his future still remains uncertain, and he says he will be giving it everything to end a difficult year on a high.
The Thai driver has scored two podium finishes during his second full year in Formula 1 but has been made to look distinctly average by his Aston Martin Red Bull Racing team-mate Max Verstappen, and many are calling for the team to make changes to its line-up for 2021, particularly with the likes of Sergio Pérez and Nico Hülkenberg available.
Albon says he will be putting as much effort into the season finale at the Yas Marina Circuit as he would in any other race, and he wants to end the season with good result.
“It’s the last race of the year but that doesn’t mean any less effort goes into it,” said Albon. “On my side I’m pushing hard to finish the season strong and we’ll be giving it everything like we always do..
“Abu Dhabi is a nice one. It’s a circuit we’ve driven a lot in Formula 3 and Formula 2 and it’s also one of the circuits I drove at last year in the Red Bull so I can use my experience from 2019 into this year.
“It’s a new weekend in Abu Dhabi and we’ve done our homework on the simulator so we know what we need coming into this race. It’s a circuit where we tend to be okay but Mercedes always seem to be strong here so let’s see.”
Albon struggled for pace during last Sunday’s Sakhir Grand Prix, ending the day with a sixth-place finish despite the two Mercedes AMG Petronas Formula One Team drivers enduring tough days and team-mate Verstappen retiring on the first lap.
He says the car felt good around the corners, but they were unable to take advantage of that due to being too slow in a straight-line, something that was important around the outer track of the Bahrain International Circuit.
“Sakhir was okay but it was a difficult race and a tricky circuit for us,” he said. “We were good in the corners but slow on the straights which just made racing much more difficult and we couldn’t really show our pace.”
