Curhatan Albon After Being Dumped By Red Bull

Alexander Albon (Instagram @alex_albon)

JAKARTA - Alexander Albon poured his heart out via Instagram on Sunday after being dumped by Red Bull, who preferred Mexican racer Sergio Perez as Max Verstappen's partner next season.

At the end of the 2020 season, Albon is under pressure from Red Bull to prove himself to be able to defend his bench in the team bearing the red bull logo for 2021. However, the Italian rider seems to have failed to live up to the expectations of team boss Christian Horner and his advisor Helmut Marko.

"I can not lie, this hurts," wrote Albon on his Instagram account. "I put everything in there, but it's not enough.

Albon started his F1 career in 2019 with the Toro Rosso (now AlphaTauri) team before being promoted to Red Bull in the middle of the season.

The 24-year-old Thai racer failed to match Verstappen's performance this season when the Dutch rider won two races and finished third in the standings.

While Albon ended his second season in F1 in seventh place, with the same points as McLaren driver Carlos Sainz, who will move to Ferrari.

After being displaced by Perez, Albon will now take on a new role as a Red Bull test and reserve racer.

"I want to say a big thank you to those of you who have supported me during this year, especially the Thai fans.

"With all the differences of opinion, I always have you guys to go through all this. I will not give up, I have devoted my life to this and I will not let it stop here.

"I still want to give more and my focus is to come back for 2022 and fly the Thai flag again."

Perez, who won his first career win at the Sakhir Grand Prix in Bahrain this year, was proposed by Red Bull after finding his seat at Racing Point to be occupied by four-time world champion Sebastian Vettel, whose contract with Ferrari has expired.

Red Bull, finishing second in the constructors' rankings, will again try to break Mercedes's dominance next year when the racing season starts in Australia on March 21.