145-race driver already under ‘pressure’ after ‘moment of madness’

Follow us on Google Discover

Aston Martin driver Lance Stroll already seems to be feeling the ‘pressure’ this season, according to one journalist.

Stroll became the first driver to crash out of a Grand Prix this season when he retired on the first lap in Saudi Arabia last weekend.

And Autosport’s Bryn Lucas feels errors such as this could be costly for the Canadian.

Stroll, who was starting his 145th race, clipped the inside barrier at turn 22 and then went careering into the tyre wall at turn 23 after breaking his front suspension.

It was a mistake he’d also made in practice, although on that occasion he touched the wall lightly enough to avoid significant damage.

Stroll, whose father Lawrence owns the team, is out of contract at the end of the season.

He produced a solid performance at the first race of the season in Bahrain as he finished in 10th, one spot behind Fernando Alonso.

But Aston were thankful to the Spaniard for bringing home all 10 of their points in Jeddah.

Last season, the two-time world champion grabbed 206 of the team’s 280 points, finishing six spots ahead of Stroll in the standings.

Lance Stroll warned to raise his game

Speaking on the Autosport podcast, Lucas suggested that Stroll wasn’t invulnerable despite his father’s position.

He believes that Lawrence will only put up with the magnitude of the gap between himself and Alonso for so long.

After describing Stroll’s repeat mistake as a ‘moment of madness’, he said: “This is something that he needs to iron out. He looks like he’s feeling a fair bit of pressure, particularly when you see what his teammate’s doing.

“Fernando finished fifth in the same kit and had a decent race. He looked good out there.

“Lance Stroll at some stage is going to have to start going shoulder to shoulder with his teammate.”

Who could replace Stroll at Aston Martin?

With more than half of the grid out of contract, Stroll senior won’t be short of options if he looks elsewhere.

One potential candidate is Carlos Sainz, who will be let go by Ferrari when Lewis Hamilton joins the team.

Sky Sports F1 commentator David Croft has urged the Silverstone outfit to ‘aggressively’ pursue the two-time race-winner.

Reserve driver and F2 champion Felipe Drugovich is also available, but Croft thinks that Stroll may snub the Brazilian.

Aston may also need to convince 42-year-old Alonso to commit his remaining years in the sport to the team as he too approaches the end of his deal.