£33k-a-week F1 driver admits car still has ‘weaknesses’ ahead of Abu Dhabi GP

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Formula 1 driver Lance Stroll has admitted that his Aston Martin still has a few weaknesses heading into this weekend’s race in Abu Dhabi.

Stroll was part of the second group of drivers interviewed in the final pre-race press conference of the year.

There are few drivers going into this weekend’s final Grand Prix in better form than Lance Stroll.

The £33,000-a-week driver has achieved back-to-back in Brazil and Las Vegas to give his points tally a welcome boost.

It’s not been the easiest season for Stroll who was quickly left behind by teammate Fernando Alonso in the driver’s standings.

The Spaniard recorded six podium finishes in his first eight races, while Stroll’s best finish of the season is still a fourth place.

There were even suggestions at one point that his antics behind the scenes at Aston Martin were affecting team morale.

However, his form began to change in Brazil and Las Vegas, the Canadian was widely praised for his display.

Stroll has admitted he’s still not completely happy with his car going into the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

The layout of the track might not particularly suit his Aston Martin.

With a battle still on for fourth place in the Constructors’ Championship Stroll and Alonso will be hoping to pull one more good result out of the bag to overtake McLaren.

Stroll says Aston Martin still have weaknesses in Abu Dhabi

Asked how much confidence he now has in the car, Stroll said: “I think it’s much better for sure, there’s still some weaknesses in the car I don’t think were super quick in a straight line.

“We’re not very efficient and like in Vegas I don’t think we were actually that quick but a lot of things worked out in the race and we had a good strategy and all that stuff, but we managed to get a good result.

“We weren’t as quick as we were in Brazil, just in terms of general speed. But I do think we’re stronger than we’ve been for a while so that is good and I’m hoping we can be strong this weekend.”

Stroll is on course for his best-ever finish in the Drivers’ Championship this year so long as Alpine pair Esteban Ocon and Pierre Gasly don’t overtake him in Abu Dhabi.

The Canadian has only scored points here twice on six occasions, recording a 10^th-place finish in 2020 before finishing eighth last year.

The 127-point gap currently between him and Alonso highlights the difference in talent between the two drivers, but the Spaniard is one of the greatest drivers in Formula 1 history.

It does occasionally raise questions about his suitability to the team, but he can go into 2024 knowing he ended this campaign on a high.