Albon and Williams are in love with the C2 tyre

Alexander Albon lauded the C2 Pirelli tyre, as he feels his Williams is at its best on that compound, having completed a near-race distance on it in Melbourne on Sunday.

The C2 was the hardest compound available in the Australian Grand Prix and, having started last, Albon opted to use that tyre from the start – and it paid dividends.

He stayed out during both Safety Car periods in the race, which elevated him into the top 10 positions. But rather than pitting and falling all the way to the back – as was the case with Fernando Alonso – he was able to keep going all the way to the penultimate lap of the race before finally coming in for his compulsory stop.

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He then brought home an unlikely P10 finish, much to the delight of the Williams team for their first point of the season – and even more so for himself, given the circumstances surrounding his strategy.

Rather than the tyres degrading towards the end of the maximum of 40 laps Pirelli recommended on the tyre, the Williams driver commented that the opposite effect was taking place.

“It just got better and better and by the end of it, it felt like qualifying laps for the last 25 laps of the race,” Albon told reporters after the race, per Motorsport.com.

Just call him the tyre whisperer. pic.twitter.com/iXmda44xox

— Williams Racing (@WilliamsRacing) April 10, 2022

“Obviously it’s completely unexpected, but it really highlights all the work that’s been