Lance Stroll has come under increasing pressure this season due to his massive underperformance compared to two-time champion Fernando Alonso. The Canadian is currently tenth in the championship with 47 points, a whopping 136 points behind the Spaniard. Even though Lance has struggled throughout this campaign, he yet continues to have the support of his father, Lawrence Stroll, who owns the Aston Martin F1 team. The 64-year-old claimed in a recent interview with Sky Sports that his son has been “unlucky” this season.
Lance has indeed had a difficult 2023 campaign not only because of his poor results on the race track, but also for moments that took place off it. Even before the season began in March, the 24-year-old suffered injuries to both his wrists due to a bike accident. Although he made it in time for the season opener in Bahrain, he revealed that he wasn’t at a 100%.
Another reason why the Canadian driver has struggled massively in comparison to his rivals is because of the nine retirements he has had due to various issues. These are some of the reasons that Lawrence highlighted in a recent interview to explain why his son has been “unlucky“.
Lawrence Stroll feels sad for “unlucky” Lance Stroll
Lawrence Stroll stated that most of the issues Lance Stroll has faced this season are beyond his son’s control. “Lance started the year on the back foot with two broken wrists for the first half-dozen races, which was very challenging, but really did a heroic job – and he’s had an unfortunate amount of bad luck,” explained the Canadian billionaire (as quoted by crash.net).
After stating the same, Lawrence made a reference to the number of retirements his son has had this season. “Half of the races it hasn’t been anything to do with his own abilities, he has just had a lot of bad luck, sadly,” added the 64-year-old.
Since Lance has struggled to register some good points-scoring finishes for the team for various reasons that are not in his control, frustrations have been increasing for him. This anger reached a boiling point this past weekend in Qatar when he seemingly shoved an Aston Martin team member.
FIA issue their verdict after Lance seemingly shoves a team member
According to crash.net, the FIA has issued a written warning to Lance Stroll after he seemingly shoved a team member in the Aston Martin garage. On receiving the 24-year-old‘s apology for the same, the FIA also issued a statement, making it clear that they have a “zero-tolerance stance against misconduct and condemns any actions that may lead to physical harassment“.
“The Compliance Officer has noted his apology and issued a written warning, reminding Lance of his responsibilities as a competitor bound by the FIA Code of Ethics and other FIA ethical and conduct guidelines set forth by the sporting regulations,” read a further part of the FIA’s statement.
While the FIA made it clear that there is “zero tolerance” for physical harassment, Aston Martin team principal Mike Krack attempted to defend his driver. As per FormulaPassion, the 51-year-old stated that individuals usually release their frustrations when their “performance is lower than expectations“.
Krack then concluded his remarks by requesting people to “have a little more respect” for drivers instead of slamming them for such actions. Even though the Luxembourgish team principal did his best to defend Stroll’s actions, the F1 community was not too pleased and made their frustrations clear with the Canadian.
