Horner defends his pupil after much criticism in the media
F1 News
- GPblog.com
Alexander Albon experienced a mediocre first two races of the season. In the first race he collided with Lewis Hamilton of Mercedes, and in the second race he had no chance against superstar Max Verstappen. As criticism of Albon began to grow, the team boss of Red Bull Christian Horner seemed a good time to defend his pupil.
Finishing eleven seconds behind your teammate isn't a good thing, especially when that teammate has also stopped one more time. Of course Horner knows that too. But Horner prefers to take the positive side: "We must not forget that this is only his eleventh race with us. And the fact that he can compete with Lewis Hamilton is good. On top of that comes the extra pressure from the fact that he has Verstappen as a team mate. I think he's handling it incredibly well." says Horner on motorsport.com
Patience is a virtue
Of course Horner wants at all costs to prevent Albon from taking the same route as Pierre Gasly. Gasly collapsed last season under pressure from the media and teammate Max Verstappen, resulting in a demotion. "Albon is smart, he thinks a lot about his row of qualities. We really have to be patient with him, and put an arm around him. This way we make sure he feels that he gets the support that he definitely gets from us as a team".