Alexander Albon penalized in Australia
After a collision with Lance Stroll during the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, Williams driver Alexander Albon will be penalized with a three-place grid penalty for the Australian Grand Prix on April 10th.
On the 48th lap of the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, Alexander Albon attempted an overtaking maneuver on Lance Stroll. In eleventh position at the time, the Thai driver tried to pass the Aston Martin driver on the inside of the first corner. However, Albon was unable to complete his maneuver and collided with Stroll. As a result, the right front tire of the Williams hit the sidepod of the Aston Martin and lost its rim, forcing Albon out of the remainder of the race.
If Lance Stroll was able to cross the finish line, an investigation has been opened regarding the collision. The FIA has decided to move Alexander Albon back three places on the Australian starting grid in two weeks.
The Commissioners heard the driver of car 23 (Alexander Albon), the driver of car 18 (Lance Stroll), the team representatives, and examined the evidence provided by the collision video » states the document from the FIA. Car 23 attempted to overtake car 18 on the inside by braking late. In executing this maneuver, car 23 locked up and collided with car 18 at the end of the corner. We have determined that car 23 is fully or mainly responsible for this collision. ».
In doing so, Albon inherited a three-place penalty in addition to losing two points on his super license. After Nicholas Latifi’s earlier accident in the race, Williams once again failed to score any points in this second Grand Prix of the season. Alongside Aston Martin, they are the only team with their points tally blocked at 0.
