Albon had another year to run on his deal but has agreed to extend that relationship.

He’ll remain with Williams on a new ‘multi-year’ contract that effectively locks him out of a potential move for 2025 or 2026.

“I am incredibly happy to be remaining with Williams Racing and to continue working with such a talented and dedicated team of people,” he said.

“It has been a difficult start to the year but since joining Williams we have made significant progress together and I have seen the huge changes happening behind the scenes to take us back to the front of the grid.

“This is a long-term project that I really believe in and want to play a key role in which is why I have signed a multi-year contract.

“The journey will take time but I am confident we are building the right team to move forward and achieve great things in the years to come.”

Team boss James Vowles added: “We are delighted to secure Alex’s long-term future with Williams Racing.

“He has exceptional talent, technical input and dedication to the cause and this is a huge vote of confidence in Williams and the journey back to competitiveness that we are on.

“Since joining, Alex has consistently demonstrated his ability to perform under pressure, and signing him for the long-term is a big piece of the puzzle of moving us up the grid.”

Albon had been touted as a potential wildcard in the driver market.

The highly-rated Thai-licensed Brit was part of the Red Bull programme, racing alongside Max Verstappen at Red Bull Racing in 2019 and 2020 before falling out of F1.

After spending 2021 on the sidelines, he returned with Williams for 2022, where he became de facto team leader alongside Nicholas Latifi.

Following Lewis Hamilton’s decision to join Ferrari for next season, Albon was one of the drivers linked with replacing the seven-time world champion at Mercedes.

However, Vowles was quick to point out that he held a contract for next season and was disinterested in allowing Albon to leave.

Despite that, the 28-year-old has remained the subject of speculation, including that he could have his contract bought out by Mercedes for 2025, with Mercedes youngster Kimi Antonelli slotted in at Williams.

With Albon now locked away with Williams, it completes another piece of the driver puzzle for next season.

Red Bull Racing has Max Verstappen under contract until 2028, though there remains speculation he could be tempted away early.

Ferrari has Hamilton and Charles Leclerc while McLaren has confirmed Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri will remain with the organisation.

George Russell will continue with Mercedes next season, while Aston Martin has announced Fernando Alonso for another two seasons with Lance Stroll expected to be a shoo-in alongside him.

At Sauber, Nico Hulkenberg has signed on for what will become the Audi factory team for 2026.

Still unconfirmed are seats at Red Bull Racing (Sergio Perez), Mercedes (Hamilton), Alpine (Pierre Gasly and Esteban Ocon), RB (Daniel Ricciardo and Yuki Tsunoda), Sauber (neither Valtteri Bottas nor Zhou Guanyu are expected to continue though only one seat remains), Haas (Kevin Magnussen and Nico Hulkenberg), and Williams (Logan Sargeant).