Lance Stroll set the stage for a chaotic race in Brazil. The Canadian was out of the Grand Prix even before the official race start, denying Aston Martin the chance to score crucial points. Günther Steiner has an idea why Stroll is often involved in incidents: ‘He doesn’t want to be a Formula 1 driver.’
Stroll spun off the track in turn four during the formation lap in São Paulo. The Aston Martin driver then tried to rejoin the track but ended up in the gravel trap. For Stroll, the race was over at that point. It wasn’t the first time that weekend that the driver had parked his Aston in the barriers. During the qualifying session in São Paulo, the Canadian also caused a red flag, partly resulting in Max Verstappen being out of Q2.
Günther Steiner reflects on Stroll’s botched formation lap. “He knew he was doing something stupid in the formation lap and then he just lost control of what he was doing,” analyzes the former team boss of Haas in the Red Flags podcast. “I think he panicked. In situations where the world is watching you and you’re always getting criticized, you do something stupid in the formation lap. What do you do next? Something else stupid. It’s like a brain fart.”
Never Happy
Stroll has been racing in Formula 1 since 2017 and has so far started in 163 races. According to Steiner, there is only one reason why the Canadian ever got into Formula 1. “He never seems to be happy, no matter what happens,” the Italian continues. “I think a lot of people criticize him: ‘He’s such a bad driver. He’s only there because his dad owns the team.'”
Yet Steiner also believes there is some truth in that last remark. “But let me put it this way: if his dad didn’t own a team, I don’t think Lance would be a Formula 1 driver, because he doesn’t want to be,” concludes the former team boss.
