Albon has done enough to retain his Red Bull F1 seat - Brawn

Formula 1 chief Ross Brawn believes Alex Albon is “doing a good enough job” to warrant retaining his Red Bull seat for the 2021 season.

After finishing outside of the points in a difficult race at Monza while Pierre Gasly - who Albon replaced at Red Bull mid-way through last season - claimed a shock maiden win for AlphaTauri, the Thai racer bounced back in style to record his first F1 podium at the Tuscan Grand Prix.

Despite being repeatedly backed by Red Bull bosses Christian Horner and Helmut Marko, Albon had found himself under increasing pressure after struggling to match the level of performance managed by teammate Max Verstappen so far this season.

But in claiming a long-awaited first podium, Albon has provided the perfect answer to any criticism he has faced, according to Brawn.

“Alex Albon has had a fair bit of flak this season, and will have found it hard to see Pierre Gasly – the driver he replaced at Red Bull midway through last year – secure his maiden victory last weekend while he failed to score,” Brawn said.

“But at Mugello, he drove beautifully – and he certainly had to work for it. Some of his overtaking moves were outstanding, particularly the pass on Daniel Ricciardo for third.

“In Max Verstappen, Albon has a stellar teammate and it’s always going to be challenging for him – or anyone in that seat.

“I think he’s doing a good enough job to maintain his seat – and this podium will have done wonders for his confidence.”

Horner concurred with Brawn’s assessment, stating that a maiden rostrum appearance will boost Albon’s confidence.

And Horner - who played down talk of a possible reverse seat swap between Albon and Gasly - has backed his driver to continue to make great strides in the remainder of the campaign.

"This podium for him will give him a boost of confidence and self-belief,” Horner told Sky F1 after the race. “I think he really will build from here quite nicely."