While he's racing against Charles Leclerc in F1 for the first time this year, Alex Albon is no stranger to the Ferrari driver's talent, having battled with the Monegasque for several years in motorsport's junior ranks.
Albon and Leclerc were contenders in the European F3 Championship in 2015, before they fought each other in GP3 a year later when the British-Thai racer finished runner up to his rival in the series.
In 2017, they followed each other up the ladder into F2 where Leclerc secured another title while Albon finished tenth.
Their paths separated thereafter as F1 beckoned for Leclerc but thanks to his lucky break this year with Toro Rosso, Albon sits once again on the same grid as his former junior rival, and is better placed than many to judge the Scuderia charger.
"I've know him since karting," Albon told Motorsport-Total.
The Toro Rosso rookie singled out Leclerc's outstanding ability to "feel the grip" as his greatest strength.
"Charles feels the grip very fast, even when it rains," said Albon who underlined how "immediately" on the pace Leclerc usually is on race weekends and how much speed he carries through the corners.
"He has no weakness in slow, medium and fast corners," added the 23-year-old who isn't surprised by Leclerc's ascendency against his Ferrari team mate Sebastian Vettel.
"If you're faster than him, it'll be by two or three hundredths at the most, you will not get more," contends Albon.
However, for all the hype and promise, Albon insists his former karting, GP3 and F2 rival hasn't changed since their formative years in the sport.
"If you hit him up in the paddock, he's still the same guy: modest, very ambitious and very talented."
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