Ex-Ferrari and Williams team manager Peter Windsor believes Lance Stroll’s current struggles against Fernando Alonso “doesn’t say much about Sebastian Vettel”, whom the Canadian partnered for two seasons.
Stroll is enduring a bit of a woeful start to 2023, having found himself engulfed by Alonso’s shadow.
The two-time World Champion has been exceptional, with him having claimed six podiums from the opening eight races of the season.
To put it into some context, Stroll hasn’t claimed a single podium so far this season, whilst he’s also only finished fourth once.
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When it comes to their head-to-head record, Stroll is getting trounced.
Alonso is currently beating the 24-year-old 7-1 both in qualifying and in the races, highlighting his superiority.
Alonso was brought into the team this season to replace Vettel, who opted to retire at the end of 2022.
The retired four-time World Champion spent his final two seasons at the pinnacle of motorsport with Aston Martin, having left Ferrari at the end of 2020.
Whilst Vettel did claim one podium for the Silverstone-based side at the 2021 Azerbaijan Grand Prix, his performances were much more similar to Stroll’s.
There was never really an outright number one driver because the duo were performing so evenly, something the statistics prove.
In 2021, Stroll was defeated 14-8 when it came to qualifying; however, he actually came out on top in the races that season, beating Vettel 11-10.
In 2022, Stroll was again defeated by Vettel 13-9 in qualifying, whilst he also narrowly lost out 11-10 when it came to the races.
Clearly, Stroll and Vettel were very evenly matched, with their head-to-head stats being almost the complete opposite of Stroll’s and Alonso’s.
Whilst it can be argued that Aston Martin’s car wasn’t as good when Vettel raced for them, he nevertheless still struggled to defeat Stroll in equal machinery.
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Alonso has obliterated his team-mate from the season-opener, with Windsor believing the Spaniard’s dominance over Stroll perhaps questions Vettel’s pace at the end of his career.
“He’s actually looking worse against Alonso than anyone he’s ever had next to him, isn’t he?” Windsor said during a livestream on his YouTube channel.
“Which says a lot about Fernando, and doesn’t say much about Sebastian Vettel actually.”