Lance Stroll looking forward to being ‘pushed’ to his limit by ‘top of his game’ Fernando Alonso

Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll will team up in 2023, at Aston Martin. Stroll is looking forward to going up against & working with such a 'great driver'.

Lance Stroll looking forward to being ‘pushed’ to his limit by ‘top of his game’ Fernando Alonso

Lance Stroll (L) and Fernando Alonso (R)

Fernando Alonso is generally considered to be one of the greatest drivers in Formula 1 history, with many left feeling that the two championships he’s won don’t reflect what ‘could’ve been’. The case in point is that he thrice lost a championship by less than 5 points. Even today, he’s considered one of the best drivers on the grid – he proved that in 2022, even though reliability was not always on his side.

However, he also has a reputation for being a ‘difficult’ teammate – or at least a ruthless one. Teammates that he’s rather famously had issues with include Lewis Hamilton at McLaren, Felipe Massa (who tipped Alonso as his ‘most difficult teammate’) at Ferrari, and most recently, Esteban Ocon at Alpine. At Aston Martin, he’ll team up with Lance Stroll, who himself doesn’t have an incredible reputation. Due to this, some predict ‘fireworks’ at the British team.

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But Stroll actually seems to be pleased with the Spaniard’s arrival – who he believes is someone that is willing to ‘push’ his teammate. In an interview with Motorsport.com, the Canadian said: “It’s no fun when you’re just kind of driving around with no one pushing you. I think what you want in a teammate is a guy that is at the top of his game. It means that when you get more out of it than him, you’re really at the top of your game, and vice versa.”

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Read More: “The real BOSS,” F1 fans express their adoration for Fernando Alonso as he gets to work at Aston Martin

Lance Stroll: Important for me and Fernando Alonso to push each other

Fernando Alonso (L) and Lance Stroll (R)
Fernando Alonso (L) and Lance Stroll (R)

Aston Martin finished P7 in 2022 – level on points with Alfa Romeo, but clearly still not where they would want to be. It’s not where Fernando Alonso would want to be either, or even Lance Stroll for that matter. They showed impressive development in 2022, but there’s still a long road to the ‘top’. Well, according to their team principal, Mike Krack, the team take their ambitions more seriously. So that’s a good sign. But the drivers also have a job to do – for themselves, and the team.

For this, they’ll need to work together but also push each other to be even better. It’s also important to extract the maximum out of the car – something Fernando Alonso is an expert at. Expanding on his previous point, Stroll said: “When you’re not getting the most out of it, it’s not that you can just sit back and relax. You’ve got to try and work harder. I think that’s what you want from the team at the end of the day, and also for them to know if you guys are pushing each other and always getting everything out of the car and the package.”

Alonso will be Stroll’s toughest teammate yet. Sebastian Vettel was the most accomplished one, but the Spaniard seems rejuvenated on his return, and it’s fair to say that he outperformed Vettel last season. It’ll be interesting to see how the two will match up. Stroll also praised his ‘future’ teammate as a ‘nice guy’, and a ‘great driver’. The Canadian is also looking forward to working with him.

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