Williams driver George Russell has praised the performance of former Formula 2 rival Alex Albon.
The lesser known of the three drivers to step up to F1 in 2019, the British-Thai racer has impressed at Toro Rosso with two points finishes in his first three races.
His P10 in China was particularly strong having had to start from the pit-lane due to a heavy crash in final practice on Saturday.
“Alex is doing a really great job at the moment,” Russell told RaceFans.
“Everybody is aware of the pressure seen upon Red Bull juniors so you understand why they’re all at 120% every single time they set foot in the car.”
It's arguable that Albon has been the second best driver in their stable this season having beaten teammate Daniil Kvyat and as Pierre Gasly struggles upon his promotion to the senior team.
Russell pointed to the "cutthroat" nature of Red Bull's program for that and compared it to his own situation as a Mercedes junior.
"It’s not that I don’t feel pressure,” he said. “At the end of the day if I’m not performing Mercedes aren’t just going to keep me there.
“There’s no need to add additional pressure to try and impress anybody more than you’re doing. My goal is to get the most out of it and if I do it then they’ll be happy.”
Also Read:
- Albon 'really happy' with recovery to P10 in China
- Albon 'surprising' Toro Rosso with solid start to F1 career
Commenting on Albon's result in Shanghai, Toro Rosso boss Franz Tost couldn't be happier.
“Alex did another fantastic race, and scored a point for a second time,” he said. “I’m really happy with his performance and how he drove this race.
“It was a perfect race, without any incidents, and also his overtaking manoeuvres during the race were very good.
“It was a well-deserved point because from Friday onwards he showed a good performance with the car.
“He was very fast on Saturday in FP3 and then, unfortunately, he came off the track.”
