‘Far too much of a yes man’ - Where Albon got it wrong at Red Bull

The British-Thai earned promotion to the Red Bull senior team after just 12 races for sister outfit Toro Rosso, but was replaced 18 months later after struggling to match the performance levels of teammate Max Verstappen. 

Having lost his seat to Sergio Perez, Albon returned to Red Bull in a reserve capacity for the 2021 season before securing a full-time drive with Williams the following season. 

Albon’s stock has never been higher after resurrecting his reputation thanks to an impressive couple of campaigns with Williams, where he has been one of F1’s standout performers. 

But he concedes he crumbled under the intense pressure at Red Bull and ultimately lacked the selfishness to succeed. 

"The attention for that seat, which had already been given to many drivers, was huge," Albon told the High Performance podcast.

“I struggled with that media attention. I had no manager and, apart from my trainer, I was on my own... I was far too much of a 'yes-man' at Red Bull. 

“I was so eager to impress and please people that I said yes to everything, whether it was simulator work, PR obligations or whatever.

"I always put the team's interests first, which meant I was already all up when I got in the car. I'm kind of ruthless now in some ways. I've definitely changed my approach to putting myself first. The reason why I do it is simple - it's because I need to care about myself more than other people.

"It's that selfishness and I realised there's a balance between being there for the team and being someone the team want to work for - because of how good they are - but also just outright.

"I'm the one driving that car, I need to be in the best position possible. So the way I go about doing it was purely my understanding of knowing what I need to be the best.

"It's honestly just that simple. What does it take and how do I get myself to be the best driver I can be, that's going to put me in the best position? I do that."