Aston Martin finds itself in a challenging situation compared to the beginning of the season, as they have been unable to introduce significant developments to their car, hindering their ability to compete with Mercedes for second place in the championship. Meanwhile, Fernando Alonso consistently competes for higher positions in the races, and he has also brought in a surge of podium finishes. However, his teammate, Lance Stroll, has struggled to harness the car’s potential in a similar manner.
Lance Stroll has faced heavy criticism following a series of poor performances, in contrast to his teammate, who continues to contribute essential points to the team. He was recently under scrutiny for his behavior towards the team after a disappointing session.
Lawrence deflects blame from son Lance
Aston Martin team owner Lawrence Stroll, who is also Lance Stroll’s father, is often considered the primary influence that keeps Lance in the team, even though he has struggled to produce results good enough for the team and help them earn valuable points in the Constructor’s Championship.
Lance Stroll has once again come to defend his son against the blame being thrown at him for being unable to produce results in the recent races. He attributes these mistakes to ‘bad luck’ and clearly states that there is no lack of talent on Lance Stroll’s part.
Lawrence Stroll doesn’t believe that the Aston Martin counterpart of Fernando Alonso is having a bad season due to a lack of what other drivers possess. The Aston Martin AMR23 showed spectacular pace early in the season, and Stroll earned a couple of points during that time. However, unlike the veteran Alonso, Stroll has been unable to fully extract the potential from his Aston Martin.
“Lance started the year on the back foot with two broken wrists for the first half-dozen races, which was very challenging, but really did a heroic job – and he’s had an unfortunate amount of bad luck,” Stroll said in an official statement.
“He’s had nine retirements due to engine failures, or a rear-wing fail. Half of the races it hasn’t been anything to do with his own abilities, he has just had a lot of bad luck, sadly.”
Stroll’s rumored F1 exit
Aston Martin will be undergoing a major name change in 2024 on account of sponsor deals, and it has been confirmed by Aston Martin officials too, given that their first sponsor Cognizant will be reviewing their deal with Aston Martin.
Amidst the hustle and bustle of preparations for winter testing, fresh stories have been circulating around the paddock about the rumored sale of the Aston Martin Cognizant F1 Team. Supposedly, Lawrence Stroll will sell the team for $800 million based on Saudi fund interest. However, the response from Stroll’s team has been simply, ‘Nothing is planned yet.’
Do you think a team as new as Aston Martin will follow such an early exit from Formula 1 given the history of changes from it’s predecessors?
