Brazilian fans sang ‘special’ driver’s name when Lance Stroll crashed at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix

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Aston Martin had their work cut out at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix with one of the most hectic Sundays in recent Formula 1 history.

The Sao Paulo Grand Prix hosted the earliest qualifying session in F1 history meaning teams were getting their cars prepared before the sun came up.

Conditions were still very tricky but good enough for qualifying to take place, but that’s where things began to unravel for Aston Martin.

Both cars made it through Q1 when Franco Colapinto crashed out before Carlos Sainz found the barriers in Q2.

Lance Stroll was the next driver to spin out but not before he and teammate Fernando Alonso had set fast enough times for the top-ten shootout.

The Spaniard crashed too, giving Aston Martin a serious amount of work to do in the few hours before the race began.

Remarkably, Aston Martin managed to get both cars on the grid, but things didn’t improve at that point.

Nineteen cars started the formation but only 18 cars returned and Stroll was the man who failed to navigate the first tour of the circuit.

His Aston Martin got beached in the gravel outside of turn four, and the Brazilian fans in the crowd were chanting the name of Felipe Drugovich when the 26-year-old got stuck.

Brazilian fans chanting Felipe Drugovich’s name after Lance Stroll’s miserable Brazilian Grand Prix

Jolyon Palmer believes Stroll had an issue with his car that caused him to spin out as soon as he touched the brakes heading down to Descida do Lago.

He was stopped for some time, with his race engineer still talking him through what to do with the car to get it ready for the start of the Grand Prix, unaware that Stroll had stopped.

Stroll came onto the team radio and said, ‘I crashed’ and while his engineer asked him about any front wing damage and requested for him to return to the pits, he got the car going again.

Unfortunately, he tried to return to the track through a deep gravel track and got beached, simply saying, ‘I’m stuck’ on the radio before getting out of the car.

READ MORE: Aston Martin driver Lance Stroll’s life outside F1 from net worth to girlfriend

The Brazilian fans at that part of the track were chanting ‘Drugo!’, when he spun, which changed to ‘Drugovich!’ when his race ended in the gravel trap.

In one video on Instagram, a caption from a fan read “Stroll who lost control on his formation lap and the crowd chanting Drugovich’s name. Brazilian sympathy is powerful.”

MP Motorsport chief Paolo Angilella called Drugovich ‘special’ as he went on to win the F2 title in 2022, however, he appears as though he’ll never get his chance in F1 with Aston Martin.

Felipe Drugovich suffering the curse of the Formula 2 champion at Aston Martin

After three seasons in F2, Drugovich won the championship in 2022, signing for Aston Martin in the process.

It was seen as a brilliant step up for the Brazilian who hadn’t been attached to an F1 team’s junior program before in his career.

READ MORE: Everything you need to know about Aston Martin F1 Team from team principal to lineage

Unfortunately, Aston Martin signed Alonso the winter after his F2 victory, meaning he wasn’t going to be promoted into Sebastian Vettel’s vacant seat.

Stroll’s position in the team is untouchable no matter how many mistakes he makes due to his father’s role in the team.

Alonso has signed a deal until the end of 2026 and if Aston Martin want to win championships, they’ll be looking to replace the Spaniard with the best driver possible, rather than promote Drugovich.

It’s no surprise that Max Verstappen is on Aston Martin’s radar, meaning Drugovich may need to move on despite Brazilian fans being desperate to see him in the car.