Alex Albon “very happy” after intense Lewis Hamilton battle in Spa

Williams star Alex Albon started the 2025 Belgian GP in the Top 5, whereas seven-time F1 champion Lewis Hamilton started the race from the pitlane. Yet, the two drivers battled for over a third of the race. Albon came out after the race and reflected on his intense battle with the Ferrari driver.

Alex Albon started the race in P5 after a brilliant qualifying session, with George Russell lined up alongside him on the third row. The Williams driver had three consecutive retirements at Spain, Canada, and Austria before getting back into the points at the British GP.

The Thai driver came to Spa Francorchamps with the hopes of building momentum after the Top 10 finish at the British GP in mixed weather conditions. Spa Francorchamps brought similar racing conditions to Silverstone with a wet start and a dry track towards the end.

Alex Albon lost a position in the first racing lap as George Russell overtook the Williams driver. Lewis Hamilton, on the other hand, was in effective P18 and started making moves under the damp conditions. The Ferrari driver's overtaking masterclass, in combination with his strategic call to be the first driver to pit for the slick tires, put him in Albon's gearbox.

F1 Grand Prix of Belgium - Source: Getty

From there on, Alex Albon ran in P6 with consistent pressure and threat from Lewis Hamilton in P7. However, the Williams driver was able to maintain his position despite 30 laps of intense pressure from the seven-time champion. Reflecting on the race and battle with Hamilton, Albon said,

“Very happy, it was not easy to hold off Lewis Hamilton and he gave me a lot of pressure for long parts of the race. In some ways, a bit annoyed to have given a position up to George Russell but to be honest with you, I think we struggled a bit more in the wet than we do in the dry. Once we put the dry tyres on we were okay.” (via F1)

Hamilton, despite being disappointed with his car and performance on Friday and Saturday, was reasonably content with his main race performance at Spa Francorchamps.

Alex Albon and Williams' “statement of intent” against the other midfield teams

Williams has been the best of the rest in the 2025 season, currently sitting P5 in the constructors' standings behind the Big 4. The Grove-based team currently sits on 70 points, with the nearest competitor, Sauber, being on 43 points.

The race at Spa Francorchamps highlighted the same, as Alex Albon detailed how he finished 12 seconds ahead of the nearest midfield competitor. He said,

“I’m happy, I think we finished 12 seconds or so in front of the next midfield car which is a good statement of intent from us and shows our package was working well this weekend, so very happy. It shows I think realistically that if we had finished every race, we would have scored points I think in nearly every race and that’s a really good trait to have.”

Alex Albon's teammate, Carlos Sainz, started the race from the pitlane, and unlike Hamilton, wasn't able to progress up the grid and finished P18.

Edited by pranavsethii