Lance Stroll isn\u2019t being given an easy time of it in F1, according to long-time Ferrari veteran Gino Rosato.<\/p>\n
The quality of Lance Stroll\u2019s teammates at Aston Martin shows that the Canadian driver isn\u2019t being given an easy ride in F1, believes former Ferrari stalwart Gino Rosato.<\/p>\n
Gino Rosato: Name me drivers having a good time with Fernando Alonso<\/p>\n
Stroll is in his third season alongside two-time F1 World Champion Fernando Alonso this year, and is tied on points with his illustrious teammate.<\/p>\n
But the Canadian driver often faces intense scrutiny and criticism from pundits and media, due to his being the son of team owner Lawrence Stroll.<\/p>\n
Stroll Senior, a billionaire, put together a consortium to purchase the beleaguered Force India team in 2018, transforming the outfit into Racing Point before rebranding as iconic marque Aston Martin in 2021.<\/p>\n
His son has driven for the team since 2019 and, with his form occasionally being quite sporadic against high-profile teammates such as Sebastian Vettel (also a World Champion signing by Aston Martin), Sergio Perez, and Alonso, it\u2019s led to the perception of him having a job security than other drivers on the grid perhaps don\u2019t enjoy to the same extent.<\/p>\n
Stroll is highly regarded within the race team and has stepped up a gear this year by proving himself as more than a match for Alonso, and topped off the first half of his season with seventh place in Hungary as the AMR25 proved competitive at the tight and twisty Hungaroring.<\/p>\n
During his career, he has scored three podiums and battled to recover quickly from wrist injuries in 2023 and earlier this year, only missing one race as a consequence of a flare-up of pain during this summer.<\/p>\n
Appearing on the\u00a0Pitstop podcast, long-time former Ferrari manager Gino Rosato, whose career with the Scuderia began in the 1990s, the Canadian scoffed at the idea that Stroll has had a different F1 journey to many of his contemporaries.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is another one that is a bit of a p**s off, in a way. Going back to the same b******t people always talk,\u201d Rosato bluntly said as he was asked about the relationship between the father and son duo at Aston Martin.<\/p>\n
\u201c\u2018Lance Stroll arrived there because he had money\u2019. Name me one Formula 1 driver who has never arrived there because he had money, or through a manager, or through a sponsor, or through a team.<\/p>\n
\u201cCan we just drop the wallet thing? If we agree on that one, then\u2026 that everybody needs money to get there?<\/p>\n
\u201cNow, Canada is maybe not the best place to find sponsors and money, and okay, the father has the money, \u2018Let\u2019s put him there\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n
Expressing some of the most commonly-expressed misconceptions of Stroll, Rosato said,\u00a0\u201c\u2018Oh, my God, but he had all the best material when he was go-karting\u2019 and all that.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat kind of manager, and I\u2019ve met them all, doesn\u2019t want the best material, for your talent or for your son?<\/p>\n
\u201cHe did all the ranks. He fought where he had to go to. \u2018Oh, but his father wants to help him\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n
Stroll\u2019s first teammate in F1 was the highly-regarded Felipe Massa, before later signings as his teammate within his father\u2019s team included the four-time F1 World Champion Sebastian Vettel. When the German opted to leave F1 after 2022, he was replaced by the formidable two-time F1 World Champion Alonso.<\/p>\n
More on Aston Martin and Lawrence Stroll<\/p>\n
\ud83d\udc49\u00a0Lawrence Stroll: How the Aston Martin F1 owner made his $3.9 billion fortune<\/a><\/p>\n