Fernando Alonso reflects on the “unique” relationship he has with Lance Stroll
The Spanish driver spoke about his relationship with his young Canadian teammate, whom he describes as "unique" in the paddock.
The start of the 2023 season was marked by Aston Martin’s surprising performance: the Silverstone team achieved six podium finishes in the first eight races, all thanks to Fernando Alonso. The Spaniard was able to secure two more podium finishes later on in a season where Aston Martin slipped in the hierarchy, particularly in comparison to Mercedes, Ferrari, and McLaren.
This decrease in results was explained by the lack of improvements made by the British team throughout the season, but also by Lance Stroll’s underperformances compared to his teammate.
When talking about his relationship with Lance Stroll at Aston Martin, Fernando Alonso has shown himself to be very positive. “It’s going very well. I think we have a very unique relationship,” he said. “We talk a lot, we are in contact every week on the phone, at the factory, during races, and we try to make sure that we are all going in the same direction and that we share a lot of things,” added the 42-year-old driver.
“He went through some difficulties this year,” explained Alonso. “The car was behaving differently, and he had a bit more trouble than me, but now I think we have corrected some things in the car and now he is back in great shape.”
Throughout the season, the Spanish veteran did everything to help his young teammate: advice during the Azerbaijan Grand Prix in the middle of the race through the radio, a position taken after a complicated start to the season experienced by Stroll…
It was impressive to see his determination and motivation through the ups and downs, from the beginning of the year with the broken hand, and then halfway through the season with some difficulties; he was so determined to put things back on track and finally did it, after I think it was Mexico and now the race in Brazil, the race in Vegas. », the Spanish said.
Alonso added that he didn’t expect to see such a high level of involvement from his Canadian teammate. It was a surprise for me, to be honest, the level of commitment and motivation he has, so these are only good news and positive things for the team.
Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll will compete in their second season as teammates at Aston Martin in 2024. The British team will unveil their future car on February 12th.
