Wrist injuries and Alonso’s dominance: Lance Stroll reflects on his first half of the year
For MotorSport, Lance Stroll reflected on his early season, hampered by his wrist injury and overshadowed by his teammate Fernando Alonso.
Once again this season, Lance Stroll is the target of criticism. The same old story since his arrival in Formula 1, that he would have a seat thanks to his name rather than his skills as a driver, as he drives for the team owned by his father, billionaire Lawrence Stroll.
After a first half of the year troubled by a severe wrist injury and where he is widely beaten by his teammate at Aston Martin, the Canadian opened up to the magazine MotorSport.
For him, his mixed results are not just due to his double wrist fracture that occurred two weeks before the opening GP. « It certainly didn’t help to miss 250 practice laps and not be at my best physically at the beginning of the season. However, I think that more than my injury, it was the misfortune on the track that made us suffer », assured Stroll, referring to his known engine issue in Saudi Arabia or his disrupted qualifying in Monaco due to debris, which forced him to settle for a 14th place on the grid.
Ready to catch up with Alonso?
Obviously, his health issues must not have helped the 24-year-old driver, but the criticisms are still pouring in, especially since he is at the wheel of the best single-seater he has ever had with the AMR23. Especially since by his side, Fernando Alonso, 42 years old, seems to be finding a second youth.
The Spanish veteran [has beaten Stroll 11 times](/f1/actualite/31301-les-duels-coequipiers-mi-saison-f1-2023.html “Les faces à faces internes de chaque écurie à mi-saison”) in 12 GPs, has 102 points more than him, and leads the Silverstone team to an astonishing 3rd place.
« He has performed at a very high level throughout the year, making very few mistakes – no mistakes – and credit must be given to him because he has driven at an extremely high level and truly maximized the potential of the car every week », acknowledges Lance Stroll. « He achieves this kind of A+ performance every week, while I had some A’s, but I also had some C’s and it’s been a bit more challenging. But there are still many races to go. »
In any case, a return to Lance Stroll’s best level, who admits to feeling 100% again only in Monte Carlo, could be beneficial for Aston Martin in the race for the podium, or even for the second place behind Red Bull.
