Ex-Formula 1 driver Martin Brundle has warned Lance Stroll against making questionable moves on new team-mate Fernando Alonso, or risk having “more than sore wrists” as a result.
Aston Martin have proven already at the Bahrain Grand Prix that they are a real threat to the usual leading trio, with Alonso having topped both Free Practice 2 and Free Practice 3 at the Bahrain International Circuit.
The Silverstone-based team are a serious contender for the victory come Sunday, with Stroll having also done an impressive job despite having missed the entirety of pre-season testing.
The Canadian was ruled out of testing after breaking one wrist and spraining the other whilst cycling in Spain, with him having had surgery on the broken wrist as a result.
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He’s recovered incredibly quickly, although, some discomfort could be seen when turning for the first corner.
Whether Stroll and Alonso can qualify well remains to be seen; however, their race runs during Free Practice proved that they can’t be looked over for a potential podium.
With that in mind, Brundle has warned Stroll to race carefully around his Spanish team-mate.
“They might not be right at the front in qualifying, but we do think that during the longer stints it’s a great car – and if anybody can wring the neck and drive the wheels off a great car it’s Fernando Alonso,” Brundle told Sky Sports F1.
“If [Stroll] puts the moves on Fernando that he put on Seb as his team-mate, he’ll be in the grandstands or he’ll have more than sore wrists!”
Before driving in the car on Friday, Stroll spoke to reporters where he discussed how good the AMR23 looks, with the Canadian having revealed that the entire team are “really excited”.
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“It looks great,” Stroll told reporters, including PlanetF1.com.
“I think everyone’s really excited, I’m really excited to be here and to get back driving. It was painful watching the test from a couch and not being in the car.
“Early signs look good, but never know until you go racing. So I think we’re going to find out a lot more when we start this week.”