Alex Albon has revised his initial criticism of Williams teammate Franco Colapinto's aggressive move at the start of the Formula 1 Singapore Grand Prix, acknowledging that his first assessment might have been too harsh.
From P12 on the grid, one spot behind Albon, Colapinto successfully overtook several cars on the short run down to the first corner, thanks to having a clear path on the left side of the track and to braking late into Turn 1.
The Williams rookie breezed past RB’s Yuki Tsunoda, Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz and Albon. But the latter felt that the Argentine had dangerously forced the issue, the Anglo-Thai racer making his view clear with a frantic radio message to his team immediately after his teammate’s move.
"Franco just divebombed," said a visibly irked Albon. "What's he doing?"
However, after reviewing video footage of the race’s start, Albon took a step back and admitted that the situation was not as clear-cut as he initially thought.
He explained that the real issue was the congestion at the corner, which left little room for anyone to maneuver, rather than an outright mistake from his teammate.
"I don't know how it looked on the outside, but I think it was more just that no one could turn into the corner," commented Albon after the race, quote by Motorsport.com.
"So, everyone concertinaed and basically had to go straight at turn one. I was on the outside and I paid the price [by having to take to the run-off].
"I mean nothing really to criticise. It was just a bit unfortunate I was the one on the other side of the corner.”
Taking to the run-off area amid the commotion, Albon ultimately dropped to 15th, which disrupted his race from the outset before he was forced to retire woth a cooling issue on lap 15 of 62.
"It was a bit frustrating,” he admitted. “But I think the whole weekend has been a bit frustrating. Having a car that should have been top-ten and we haven't got that."
As for Colapinto, the 21-year-old put in another solid performance that carried him to P11, just outside the points.
He admitted to having been puzzled by Albon’s reaction to his first-corner move, insisting that he saw an opportunity and took it without forcing anyone off the track.
"I don't know. I only saw Tsunoda next to me,” he recounted. “There was a space, and I went inside in the corner.
“There was no one on my right, and I left space on the right to the white line, and there was no one there. So, I don't know. I didn't see the replay yet."
Reflecting on his own performance, Colapinto, who ran a short stint on the mediums before undertaking a long 41-lap run on the hards, believed that a better strategic call by his team could have allowed him to secure a points finish.
"I just think that we need to defend that a little bit better and not let these mistakes happen again," he said, noting how crucial the timing of pit stops proved in the race.
"Because just by stopping a lap too late, we lost the place in the points. But it is what it is. We win and we lose together."
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