No matter what happens to Lance Stroll, Formula 1’s fanfare, think the fan in it and those who not always fare too well on the fairness meter, will give a hard time to the Aston Martin driver.
That’s primarily because somehow it doesn’t sit too well with the observers and lovers of the game that a rich man’s son made it to this sport.
Even if that means that Lance Stroll, a former Italian F4 champion and the 2016 FIA European Formula 3 champion, would’ve worked hard to get where he is.
At the same time, can the Formula 1 fan- passionate, well read, and very often with nothing held back- be denied or wronged for his views on Stroll?
For starters, the common narrative is that Lance Stroll could be anything but little more than Lawrence Stroll’s son. You know Mr. Stroll as the powerful and wealthy business magnate and the chief power inducer to the Aston Martin team.
You also know him as the man who happens to be Fernando Alonso’s boss as also, technically speaking, the boss man who might be ever so lenient to his son. It’s a son who has to his names brave podiums at Azerbaijan when drivers far more experienced than him such as the wonderful and always affable Nico Hulkenberg have none whatsoever.
Secondly; the first presumption that a rich man’s son doesn’t have to work too hard and will forever get to keep his seat doesn’t take into consideration the reality that Lance Stroll, who truly endured a poor 2023, still finished on tenth.
Surely, being among the top three is a real high and faring inside top ten is another thing altogether.
You’d rather be on the podium – think Gasly and Ocon who managed that in a car far less speedier than Stroll’s- than finish tenth.
Not that P10 can in any what whatsoever ever show the promise of any driver. But in a year where Lance Stroll found himself out of sorts on more occasions than the average bank account holder fills an account opening form, was scoring 74 points atrocious?
Or could it be that in the champagne-spraying highs of a Formula 1 Grand Prix’s aftermath, we’ve become all too obsessed with just the big names alone; think Stroll’s fascinating and daring teammate Fernando Alonso and the man who aced 2023 like the main man of the sport: Max Verstappen.
Furthermore, could it be that despite being inconsistent- Stroll had 3 DNF’s, including one in just the second race of the season at Jeddah- the youngster’s best days lie ahead?
Maybe he’s not the best driver on the grid. Actually he doesn’t seem to be at half the level where his double world championship winning teammate Alonso is after spending two decades tussling with nineteen other cars on the grid.
But how on earth can one adjudge a P10 on the driver’s standings with 74 points as being any less significant than the significant failure on the part of names like Kevin Magnussen and Valtteri Bottas for arguments’ sake who’ve had 20 and 79 more race starts, respectively, than Stroll?
To those who support young drivers and don’t mind revelling in their progress , it ought to be reminded that the 25-year-old driver has 268 points to his name in addition to no fewer than 1 pole and 3 career podiums.
That’s having more often than not vastly experienced and relentless teammates of the class of Sergio Perez and as one sees today, Fernando Alonso.
If anything, Stroll’s job, is only tougher much like the case of former world champion (2016) Nico Rosberg, who once partnered Michael Schumacher, circa notable seasons like 2012 (the F1 W03 days).
Surely, Stroll’s not the daring of Mansell, Prost or the sheer courage of Schumacher, Alonso or Vettel. But he’s on a grid where there are few friends and often, rancid critics.
He’s competing in the world’s fastest form of motor racing event that is second to none in terms of sheer thrill and pure exhilaration.
Quite frankly, if he’s rich or is “loaded”, as some say, one can’t help it. Surely, his monies aren’t going to drive him to success. He can’t change his fate. But his ability to get down, focus and take the vital lessons learnt from what’s clearly been a challenging 2023 season, will keep him in good stead.
Forget not that the man so easily derided scored a P5 at Brazil, which was replicated at the first-ever Las Vegas Grand Prix and then, that tenth at Yas Marina, where thanks to his little appreciated efforts the Aston Martin outfit saw both cars finishing in points.
No?