Williams driver Alex Albon’s hopes of a strong qualifying result at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix took an unexpected turn when a rare incident caught the attention of stewards.
Williams had both cars in Q3 for the first time this season, positioning the team for its highest grid spots of 2024.
Franco Colapinto, Albon’s new team-mate, managed to outqualify him in P9, while Albon secured P10, +1.494 seconds off pole-sitter Charles Leclerc.
Despite the strong showing, an operational mishap quickly overshadowed the achievement.
Franco Colapinto qualified P9, one place ahead of Alex Albon
Albon's fan incident causes double-yellow flags
With just minutes remaining in the session, disaster struck. As Albon pulled out of the pit lane, the Thai driver was forced to stop, realising the luminous yellow airbox fan had been mistakenly left attached to the car.
The incident brought out double-yellow flags, momentarily disrupting the final stages of qualifying.
McLaren's Oscar Piastri, who was following Albon on track, noticed the unusual situation and promptly alerted his team over the radio:
"The Williams still has the airbox fan in!"
With Williams showing improved pace and both drivers in the top ten, all eyes are now on how Albon and Colapinto will perform on race day.
If the team can recover from this qualifying mishap, they could be on track for one of their best results of the season.
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