Since his arrival in Formula 1 in 2017, Lance Stroll has been the subject of many criticisms mainly related to the fact that his entry into the discipline was facilitated by the financial involvement of his father, billionaire Lawrence Stroll, in certain structures. After a visit to Williams in 2017 and 2018, it was when the latter bought the assets of Force India to rename the team “Racing Point” that Lance was recruited, in 2019, alongside Sergio perez.
Now 22 years old, the Canadian is coming off his best season, finishing 11th in the 2020 drivers’ standings, signing his second and third career podiums, after the first in 2017 in Baku. Despite everything, it was far from enough to level the playing field with Pérez who largely dominated him by finishing fourth and signing a victory at the GP of Sakhir.
At the instigation of Stroll Sr. who bought the automobile company, Aston Martin is now the new identity of the late Racing Point and Lance was preferred to Pérez when composing the duo for 2021. He will be associated with a high-caliber driver, the quadruple World Champion Sebastian Vettel.
Asked about the criticisms suffered by his son and the idea that his maintenance is above all linked to his family relationship rather than to performances, Lawrence Stroll answers for Press Association: “There are a lot of jealous people in the world and jealous people, who wish they could be in Lance’s place, do and say silly things. I don’t pay much attention to it and neither does Lance.”
For him, he has the weapons to be F1 Champion one day. “Do I think Lance is talented? I think he is immensely talented. I have no doubt that he has shown to have World Champion blood in him. It all pays off when you get in the ring, and he showed it by putting her in pole position in the rain in Turkey last year, when the level of play was level. There aren’t many people who can do that. “
Regarding his other driver, Sebastian Vettel, Lawrence Stroll continues to display his unwavering confidence despite three complicated last seasons at Ferrari. “This team has done a lot of things, but one thing it hasn’t done is to be World Champion, and what Seb brings is this mindset, the methodology, the ethics of work and planning around being the World Champion and that is invaluable. “
“He’s incredibly motivated to be part of Aston Martin’s comeback to Formula 1. You don’t become a four-time World Champion and then forget how to drive. There were factors that played on his mind last year, but I have no hesitation in saying it will be as fast as ever. “
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