Bottas, Albon or Hulkenberg? The best options for Williams when Russell leaves
F1 News
- GPblog.com
Alongside Aston Martin, Williams looks set to make some tough choices when it comes to its line-up for next season. The chances of George Russell driving for Mercedes next year have increased thanks to the lacklustre performance of Valtteri Bottas and Nicholas Latifi's place is all but certain.
But beyond these two drivers, what are the best options for Williams? In an article on Formula1.com Lawrence Barretto lists them. The analyst starts with Russell and Latifi, but then quickly arrives at Valtteri Bottas. The Finn could, in exchange for Russell, make the switch from Mercedes to Williams. It would be a return to the old nest for the Finn.
De Vries not mentioned
But if de Vries, who will probably have to find another seat with Mercedes leaving Formula E after this season, is not mentioned then who is? Danill Kvyat is one name that comes up in the article.
"The Russian, currently reserve driver at Alpine, is keen to return to racing and has recent F1 experience that would be valuable to the British team, which can now afford to make driver decisions based on talent."
Hulkenberg and Albon options?
Nico Hulkenberg, who can also count on interest from IndyCar and from Alfa Romeo, and Alex Albon are also mentioned by Barretto. Albon currently plays an important role in the background at Red Bull. Finally, one last interesting name: Guanyu Zhou.
"With limited opportunities at Alpine - he is part of their junior program - both Zhou's team and Alpine management support his efforts to advance his career, even if that means at another team."
For now, it's mostly a matter of waiting to see what will happen to Russell. If he leaves for Mercedes, there will be a domino effect.