Alex Albon drops 4-word reaction to crashing out of the F1 Azerbaijan GP

Within the first 10 minutes of the qualifying for the Azerbaijan GP getting underway, the first red flag was thrown onto the street circuit due to Alex Albon crashing his Williams FW47 at turn 1. The Thai-British driver was going for his second run during Q1 when he crashed into the wall and had to retire from the session.

With Williams showing impressive performance in the early part of the weekend, many had reckoned that the two FW47s could have an easier time getting into Q3. However, this dream was soon thrown away into the bin, as the team's major point scorer crashed out of Q1.

Albon had already completed a single-timed lap and was going for an early second run to possibly avoid late yellow flags that could ruin his attempt. But, ironically, the 29-year-old caused a caution, which later turned into a red flag as he was unable to limp his car back to the Williams garage.

He had slammed his front-left tire into the inside wall at the entry of turn 1, snapping his suspension arm and damaging the wheel. Dismissed by the crash, Albon said over the radio:

"F**k, I'm out. Sorry."

Alex Albon arrived at the Azerbaijan GP weekend after a string of strong results at the previous few races.

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Alex Albon's dismal crash could cost Williams heavily

Williams' Alex Albon at the final free practice session for the 2025 F1 Grand Prix of Azerbaijan - Source: Getty

Alex Albon has been the star point scorer for Williams. Of the 86 points that the Grove-based squad has amassed, 70 have been contributed by the Thai-British driver.

But his crash during the qualifying has already relegated him to the rear section of the grid, at a race where he could have possibly started ahead on the road. Moreover, Albon was ecstatic to take on the race weekend and help Williams bolster its position even strongly in fifth in the constructors' standings, as he had said heading into the weekend (via Williams):

"Baku is a circuit that I enjoy driving, with a nice and familiar rhythm, but one you need to build up to throughout the weekend to be ready for Qualifying."

"This track provides good opportunities for overtaking, so our plan will be to maximise both Saturday and Sunday as we continue fighting for P5 in the Championship."

On the other hand, Albon was not the only one who caused a red flag during Q1. Nico Hulkenberg also crashed during Q1 after the session was restarted, prompting another red flag.

However, despite this, Albon's first run was unable to hold its place in the timing pylon, and is slated to start the race in the bottom five grid slots for the Azerbaijan GP (if he doesn't take a pitlane start or doesn't face a DNS).