SPIELBERG, Austria — Lance Stroll acknowledged he needs to raise his game to match Aston Martin teammate Fernando Alonso’s level but said his results so far do not paint an accurate picture of his season.
While Alonso has scored six podiums in eight races for the resurgent British team, Stroll has been 6th, 4th, 6th and 9th at the races he’s finished.
“I don’t think I’ve gotten the most out of our weekends, so don’t think it’s shown some of the true results,” Stroll said, reflecting on his run so far.
“There’s definitely some work to do, things to improve. Fernando’s at a very high level and I’ve got to definitely work on a few things and get better.”
Stroll’s start to the season was not ideal after breaking both wrists in a training crash before preseason testingt.
That forced him to race at the Bahrain Grand Prix with pins in his wrists, which he’s since had removed.
“Started the season strong, all things considered,” Stroll said.
“Bahrain, Jeddah, Melbourne I think was good, and then we hit a bit of a rough patch after Baku, but I know why.
“Miami was tough because we didn’t put the second set of tyres on in Q1, Monaco we had some damage in Q2, Barcelona we were competitive again, then in Canada we had some issues in Q2.
“I think there’s been reasons why it hasn’t been good, but in terms of outright pace, he’s been more on top of it than me, he’s been quicker, he’s been driving incredibly well.”
When asked how the two-time champion compares to former teammates, which have included Sebastian Vettel and Sergio Perez, Stroll said: “Yeah, he’s the best teammate I’ve ever had, that’s for sure.”
While a comparison of their results is stark Stroll believes the difference between him and Alonso in key moments has been much smaller.
“It is details and it is circumstances, like in Miami trying to get out of Q1 on one set [of tyres]… he did the same as me, he just got through by a tenth and I missed it by a tenth [of a second]. I’m 17th and he’s going to Q3.
“Same thing in Monaco, we had floor damage, you can’t recover, you start 12th,13th, where we started, and that cost us the weekend.
“Canada was a very tricky session, but when I look at the other weekends it’s been small details, things to work on, but he’s still been quicker, for sure, so I’m definitely, you know, focused on the things I’ve got to work on, and this weekend is another opportunity to do that.”