Stroll Has Tough Home Grand Prix, Finishes 17th After Penalty

Summary:

• Lance Stroll ended the Canadian Grand Prix in 17th after a 10-second penalty for blocking Pierre Gasly. 
• For the first time in his career, Stroll finished without points at his home race.
• Fernando Alonso secured a seventh-place finish for Aston Martin.

For the first time in his Formula One career, Lance Stroll walked away from the Canadian Grand Prix with zero points after finishing 7th last year, marking a disappointing home race result.

“Just a Challenging Day.”

The Montreal native finished 17th on Sunday, marking his worst result at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve outside of his 2018 DNF. A 10-second penalty for blocking Alpine’s Pierre Gasly only added to a frustrating weekend for the Aston Martin driver.

From the back, it was always going to be difficult today. Just a challenging day. I have no positives to take away from this race.

Stroll started from P17 after a red flag in Q1 on Saturday cut short his qualifying run before he could get a clean lap on medium tires, something he says sealed his fate.

“One hundred per cent“, he said, when asked if the red flag cost him a shot at a better result.

At lights out, things didn’t improve. Stroll dropped to 18th early and couldn’t find grip or pace on his initial stint with hard tires. 

He later gained a position on Gasly after a pit stop, but their battle escalated when Gasly tried to reclaim his spot down the main straight. Stroll gave the Frenchman any room, forcing him to go off-track and right onto the grass.

That move earned Stroll a 10-second penalty, which he served during a second pit stop. While he went back into the race from the last position, he was never able to recover before a late safety car froze the field.

“I have to look at it. I don’t know“, the Canadian driver said when asked about the penalty decision.

Alonso Finished in 7th Place

Meanwhile, teammate Fernando Alonso proved to have a much better outing. The 43-year-old Spaniard finished in seventh position. 

Alonso has now scored points in back-to-back races, with help from an upgrade package introduced at the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix.

“I don’t really feel any difference in the car” the 26-year-old said. 

The son of billionaire businessman Lawrence Stroll, Aston Martin F1 Team owner further commented. 

Maybe he’s just been getting good results and he feels good in the car because of that. But I felt pretty slow today.

It’s a tough pill to swallow at his home race, where expectations are always high, but this weekend, nothing went according to plan for Stroll.

Can Stroll bounce back at the Austrian Grand Prix in two weeks time? Get the best F1 odds with selected Motor Racing sportsbooks.