Ex-Formula 1 driver David Coulthard has warned Lance Stroll that F1 is a “stopwatch competition”, with the Canadian’s seat continuing to be put into question following his run of below-par performances.
Whilst Stroll is by no means an incapable driver, the 24-year-old has been engulfed by Fernando Alonso’s shadow this season.
Alonso has been sensational since making the switch to Aston Martin and has led the team on a meteoric rise up the standings.
The two-time World Champion has claimed six podiums from the opening eight races of the season, putting the team third in the Constructors’ Championship.
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Stroll on the other hand, has managed to finish in P4 once this season at the Australian Grand Prix, with that being his only result amongst the top-five.
There is quite clearly a mammoth difference in Alonso’s and Stroll’s performances, something which is certainly putting the Canadian under immense pressure.
It also puts his father, Lawrence Stroll, in a difficult position as well, given that he owns the team.
Lawrence wants Aston Martin to become championship contenders going forward and they do certainly have the car and staff to do so; however, what they’re lacking is a capable second driver.
To win a championship, the Silverstone-based team need both Alonso and Stroll to be towards the front, not just one driver.
That’s exactly what’s happened this season, with 117 out of Aston Martin’s 154 points being thanks to the Spaniard.
If Stroll was performing closer to Alonso, then Aston Martin would be challenging Red Bull for the title or at the very worst occupy a comfortable second place.
Stroll must start delivering results, with ex-team owner Eddie Jordan having asked Coulthard if Lawrence believes his son is the right driver to “do the job”.
“Here’s a question,” Jordan said on the Formula for Success podcast.
“You own Aston Martin and have poured fortunes and fortunes of your own money [into it] and there’s a huge amount of sponsorship money, what do you say to the sponsors who have come to you and they ask you the question: ‘Are you sure that Lance can do the job that we need to do to get this team to be a winning constructors team?’
“And I want to know if you’re Lawrence Stroll, what do you answer?” asked Jordan
“The stopwatch doesn’t lie,” answered Coulthard.
“[That is a] brilliantly simple statement of truth,” the Scotsman continued.
“I’m not saying Lance isn’t good enough, he’s won everything all the way through his journey towards Formula 1.
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“I think there’s been some elements of misfortune in his run this year but is it any surprise in one of the most difficult transitional qualifying sessions that you’ve seen this year, and in Monaco as well, that one young, brilliant talent [Max Verstappen] and an older brilliant talent [Alonso] find their way onto the front row?
“So there’s a point where you can’t keep making excuses.
“This is a stopwatch competition, and a certain point that is what will dictate what teams choose to do in the future. I’m sure you had drivers in the car that you didn’t truly believe a Michael Schumacher or whatever, because they were paying the bills, but you needed to do that [at the time].”