Former Haas team boss Günther Steiner says Lance Stroll looks unhappy in Formula 1.
The former director of the American Haas F1 team did not take it lightly when he analyzed the crash and retirement of Lance Stroll during the formation lap of the Brazilian Grand Prix.
Lance Stroll was not even able to start the last race organized on the Interlagos track. Indeed, during the formation lap, the Aston Martin driver lost control of his car and hit the wall at turn 4. Luckily, he had only slightly damaged his front wing. He then just had to quickly rejoin the peloton in order to place himself on the starting grid. However, through haste or inadvertence, he decided to rejoin the track by crossing a gravel trap. The latter being forged from water and his car being full of fuel, the Canadian driver finally found himself stranded in the middle of the ferry. A rather embarrassing situation for the Aston Martin driver.
According to Günther Steiner, Lance Stroll completely panicked under the pressure.
“The pressure got to him”, the former team principal told the Red Flags podcast. “He knew he had done something stupid in the formation lap and no longer took control of what he was doing.”
“I think he panicked. In situations where the world is watching you, where you are always criticized, you do something stupid in the training lap. What to do next? Something even stupider. It's like brain failure”.
Is Lance Stroll unhappy in F1?
Generally speaking, Lance Stroll rarely smiles in the F1 paddock. In addition, he was never very talkative in front of the press.
“He never seems to be happy, no matter what.”added Steiner. “So, would he be world champion if he was happy? I don’t know what it is, because some people can be good even when they are unhappy.”
“We all think he's unhappy, but maybe that's just his expression. I think a lot of people criticize him: 'He's a bad driver. He's just here because dad has the team'. But if Dad didn't have a team, I think Lance wouldn't be a Formula 1 driver, because he doesn't want to be one”, a conclu Günther Steiner.
Lance Stroll currently occupies 13th place in the Drivers' Championship. With only 24 points to his name, he is 38 points behind his garage neighbor, Fernando Alonso.
