He is a driver who does not seem to be progressing. For his eighth season in Formula 1, the Canadian once again alternated between the good and the less good, sometimes rewarding us with inconceivable incidents for such an experienced driver, as evidenced by his abandonment in Brazil even before the start when after committing a mistake in turn 4, he wanted to restart but went straight into the gravel, causing his retirement. If the former Williams driver showed that he could have the pace, this demonstration seems more and more rare over the seasons, particularly since 2021 and the change of name of the team and the arrival of new teammates.
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If Lance Stroll experienced some successes at Racing Point (pole position in Turkey in 2020, three podiums in 2020), the arrival of Vettel then Alonso at Aston Martin put a stop to the progression of the Canadian pilot. Faced with the big names in this sport, he suffered from the comparison. After a good 2021 season alongside the German, he seemed to regress in 2022 and the share of points he scored for the team decreased compared to the previous season. A trend which then continued when the Spaniard arrived at the Silverstone-based team.
A duel largely to the advantage of the Spaniard
In 2023, the duel between Alonso and Stroll was one of the most lopsided on the grid. While the double world champion fought at the front of the grid and had a string of podiums, the poleman of the Turkish Grand Prix in 2020 was further behind, undoubtedly due to his cycling injury during the off-season. Despite everything, the differential between the two drivers remains too great. Of the sixteen races completed by the two drivers, Stroll only beat his teammate twice (in Spain and Las Vegas). While the former McLaren driver scored eight podiums during the season, the Canadian driver failed to secure a single one (his fourth place in Australia was his best result of the season) and only scored 26% of the team's points. If the comparison in the race is quite painful, that in qualifying is even more so since in 2023, the Spanish driver finished ahead of Stroll 19 times out of the 22 Grand Prix (the Canadian beat him in Spain, Austria and Brazil).
A slightly better 2024 season for Stroll
For their second year of collaboration, the two drivers this time had to deal with a car that was much less competitive than in 2023 since the team did not obtain a single podium this year. Despite a lack of performance in the single-seater, the Canadian seemed to have found rhythm at the start of the season. After the first eight Grand Prix, the two drivers were tied in qualifying (4-4).
A nevertheless transparent end to the season
However, this trend did not continue for the rest of the season as he then only managed to get ahead of his teammate once in the fast lap exercise (at Silverstone). Although having managed to beat Alonso five times throughout the season, the Canadian only scored 24% of Aston Martin's points, a figure down compared to 2023 (24 points out of the 94 obtained by the team ).
Data which worries, especially since the native of Montreal is currently experiencing his longest series of races without scoring points (his last point scored dates back to the Hungarian Grand Prix, 11 races ago), which worried the Lawrence Stroll's team which has seen Haas, Alpine and Racing Bulls come back more and more and seems to be moving away from the points as the Grand Prix goes on.
Does Stroll have his place in F1?
If Aston Martin wants to win world titles in the years to come, will it be able to count on the Canadian driver? Still present in 2025 for what will constitute his seventh season with the team, Lance Stroll must progress to move the team forward. Although he is the son of the owner of the stable, his seat nevertheless remains in danger. If the investment provided by Lawrence Stroll lives up to his ambitions, he could one day decide to separate from his son.
With the possibility of Verstappen leaving Red Bull, Aston Martin could take their chance. In 2025, will we see Stroll's last season in F1? Many questions remain unanswered as F1 prepares for the last season before the arrival of the new regulations.
