Lance Stroll, Stop Strolling and Start Sprinting.
Lance Stroll finds himself under a spotlight of expectation. His path into Formula 1, fueled by his father's sponsorship of Williams and now-owner of the Aston Martin team, is well-documented.
Yet his track record indicates there's more to him than just a beneficiary of nepotism. After Monaco he is under scrutiny suggesting an urgent need to stop strolling and start sprinting.
First and foremost I'd like to think that Lance Stroll is not just at Aston Martin because his dad owns the team. Yes, that is a significant factor in him being there but he has genuinely had some great performances.
In his first season in 2017 when racing for Williams he scored an excellent podium amongst all the drama in Baku and scored his first front-row start in a wet Italian Grand Prix qualifying. That season he only finished 3 points off of very experienced teammate Felipe Massa.
It started to seem like Lance Stroll was a very promising young driver, only being 18 in his first season in F1.
He would score 2 more podiums in the next 3 years of his career both being in 2020 and both being very dramatic and exciting racing.
His second was at the Italian Grand Prix when after multiple crashes, Stroll was actually leading the grand Prix but lost out to Sainz and Gasly, although he would finish 3rd.
Then in the alternate Bahrain layout, the Sakhir Grand Prix, he would go on to finish P3 again after a quiet and decent performance. Although teammate Sergio Perez went from 3rd to 18th to 1st in a very dramatic finish.
Stroll celebrating his first podium finish in Baku, 2017. Credit: F1-Fansite
Stroll would also go on to claim his first and only pole position to date at the Turkish Grand Prix, with a wet/dry track helping him.
However despite all of this success so far in the sport, with cars which have not been capable of producing consistent podiums and wins, Stroll has done pretty well.
Despite these successes, Lance Stroll finds himself grappling with a pivotal challenge in his career. In a car considered the second fastest on the grid, the discrepancy between his and Fernando Alonso's performance is evident. Despite initial setbacks due to a wrist injury, the gulf in points - 92 for Alonso and 27 for Stroll - raises questions about his consistency.
But with 2 consecutive non-points finishing races Stroll has to do better, not just for his career but for the good of his father's latest business venture.
With Mercedes now only one point behind Aston Martin in the constructor's standings, does Lawrence Stroll give his son the benefit of the doubt for now or does he need to start looking at other options?
It's an extremely hard decision for Stroll Sr to make but if Lance doesn't start showing the pace we know he has, we could see Stroll Sr drop Lance from the team.
In a worst-case scenario, Stroll could be dropped from the team. Yet, it's worth noting his shown potential and speed in less competitive cars. His primary issue seems to be consistency. Minimizing mistakes, like those in Monaco, could unleash his full potential, aligning him closer to Alonso and strengthening Aston Martin's bid for second place.
If improvements are not evident this season, Stroll's seat at Aston Martin might truly be at risk. It's time for him to showcase that he's more than just the son of the team's owner – he's a racer with a promising future.