Five F1 teams banking on 145-race driver making a mistake to score points in Australia

The five teams in the lower half of the F1 grid are apparently relying on one particular driver to make a mistake so that they can score points.

The field has almost split in two this year, with Haas, Williams, Sauber, RB and Alpine adrift of the frontrunners.

But speaking on the Weekend Warm-Up show, F1TV’s Lawrence Baretto says there’s one driver who may inadvertently lend them a helping hand.

Haas driver Nico Hulkenberg is the only driver from the aforementioned quintet to score so far this season.

He notched a solitary point at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix by finishing in 10th.

Still, the gap between Hulkenberg and the next-best driver Lewis Hamilton was nearly half a minute at the chequered flag.

RB’s Yuki Tsunoda was the driver who gatecrashed the top 10 in qualifying, but Ferrari had to deal with the absence of Carlos Sainz.

Stand-in driver Oliver Bearman was competing in his first-ever F1 race and could only manage 11th on the grid.

Lawrence Baretto says midfield success hinges on Lance Stroll

An unnamed individual pointed out to Baretto that the lower midfield teams need Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll to make a mistake to open the door.

If Stroll keeps it clean, then he should be able to complete the top 10 with a healthy margin over those behind.

The Canadian driver crashed out in the early stages of the Saudi Arabian GP, which opened the door for Hulkenberg.

Baretto said: “Someone was saying to me earlier today it all depends on Lance Stroll for the bottom five teams.

“If he doesn’t finish, they’ve got a shot at getting those scrappy points.

“If the top five teams are finishing, they’ve got such a pace advantage over the rest of the field that it’s really hard.”

Aston Martin finished fifth in the constructors’ last year, but that may have been higher were it not for Stroll.

Fernando Alonso single-handedly scored 208 of the team’s 280 points, which was enough to take fourth in the drivers’ standings.

Stroll, by contrast, finished 10th, only 12 points ahead of Alpine driver Pierre Gasly.

He produced a solid showing at the season-opener in Bahrain by scoring the final point and coming home directly behind Alonso.

But he needs to respond quickly after a nightmare weekend in Saudi Arabia.

Stroll failed to finish the same race last year, this time for mechanical reasons, before retiring in Monaco after hitting the barriers twice.

He also missed the Singapore Grand Prix through injury following a shunt in qualifying.

One journalist thinks he’s already under ‘pressure’ heading into the Australian Grand Prix, even though his father Lawrence Stroll owns the team.

BBC F1’s Harry Benjamin has urged Stroll senior to replace his son upon the expiry of his contract later this year.

And former F1 team boss Eddie Jordan has warned him that his results up to this point simply haven’t been ‘good enough’.