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Williams announce that Albon will join Latifi at the team in 2022
2018 DAMS teammates Alex Albon and Nicholas Latifi will be reunited on the Formula 1 grid in 2022 at Williams, with the British team announcing that they have signed the duo for next season.
Albon will replace 2018 Formula 2 Champion George Russell, who is set to drive alongside Lewis Hamilton at Mercedes next year, while they have also confirmed that Latifi will continue for a third season.
Albon finished third in the 2018 F2 Championship, taking four wins and eight podiums in total, as well as three poles, which earned him a seat on the F1 grid with Toro Rosso.
After just 12 races with the Italian team, where he took 16 points and a best finish of sixth, Albon was promoted to the Red Bull works team. However, he lost his race seat to Sergio Perez and has since been fulfilling reserve and test driver duties for the team.
“I am really excited and looking forward to returning to a Formula 1 race seat in 2022. When you take a year out of F1 it’s never certain you will make a return so I’m extremely thankful to Red Bull and Williams for believing in me and helping me on my journey back to the grid.
“It’s also been great to see all the progress Williams have been making as a team this year and I look forward to helping them continue that journey in 2022. My focus now returns to my Test & Reserve Driver role at Red Bull and helping the team fight for this year’s world championship.”
Latifi was Albon’s teammate in 2018 at DAMS and finished as vice-champion with the French team the following season. Stepping up to F1 with Williams, Latifi has enjoyed consistent progress, taking his first points this season at the Hungarian Grand Prix.
He added: “I’m excited to be continuing with Williams for another year; partly because of F1's new technical regulations, but also because the team is moving in a more competitive direction with new owners, management and people on the technical side.
“I’ve felt at home here since the day I arrived, and I think I’m in the right place to continue with my positive trajectory. The aim is to continue making little improvements so we can all take advantage of the opportunity we have next year.
“I’m super excited to work with next year’s car and it’s like a fresh start for everybody. I feel privileged to be part of that change.”
When discussing the decision to sign Albon alongside Latifi, Team Principal Jost Capito highlighted the duo’s prior relationship in F2 with DAMS, saying: “He (Alex Albon) will also fit well in the team and already has with the relationship with Nicky (Latifi), as they were team mates in F2.
“All this together was important for us. If take these attributes and put them through a checklist, Alex is the guy who is the one that fits the most.