{"id":151859,"date":"2025-06-02T10:27:17","date_gmt":"2025-06-02T10:27:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/151859\/"},"modified":"2025-06-02T10:27:17","modified_gmt":"2025-06-02T10:27:17","slug":"who-slept-best-last-night-lance-stroll","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/151859\/","title":{"rendered":"Who slept best last night: Lance Stroll"},"content":{"rendered":"

After last year\u2019s Spanish Grand Prix in Barcelona this column wished Mercedes<\/a> team boss Toto Wolff a good night\u2019s sleep \u2013 mostly because of his memorable press conference appearance where he took aim at the \u201clunatics\u201d directing \u201conline abuse\u201d at his team based on improbable conspiracy theories.
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Twelve months on, unfortunately, the core issue remains unchanged \u2013 only this time Lance Stroll<\/a> is the object of online derangement.
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Hardly a week goes by without another disturbing story from the digital world \u2013 be it frenzied Franco Colapinto<\/a> fans hurling racist abuse at Yuki Tsunoda<\/a>, or the never-ending online battles between supporters of Lewis Hamilton<\/a> and Max Verstappen<\/a>. And after the events of race day in Barcelona, that latter one has had yet another payload of fuel delivered…
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But even before the Barcelona race, another frequent target was already under fire: Stroll. And this time, the criticism couldn\u2019t have been more misplaced \u2013 the Canadian had to withdraw from the Spanish Grand Prix due to injury<\/a>.
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The online reaction? \u201cRich kid\u201d, \u201csoftie\u201d, \u201cunprofessional\u201d, \u201chopefully retiring soon\u201d, \u201cno one will notice\u201d, \u201cfinally\u201d, and \u2013 most bizarrely \u2013 \u201cwhy don\u2019t you go play tennis!\u201d That last one wins the special award, since Stroll\u2019s absence was due to a lingering hand injury.<\/p>\n

\"Lance <\/p>\n

Lance Stroll, Aston Martin Racing<\/p>\n

Photo by: Zak Mauger \/ Motorsport Images via Getty Images<\/p>\n

What\u2019s worth noting, though, is this: the vast majority of comments about Stroll were dripping with ridicule \u2013 and in the unregulated Wild West of social media, some even descended into hate speech. And it makes me wonder: why is that? Is it simply a symptom of the envy-driven society we live in? Is Stroll, with his father\u2019s wealth, just an inevitable lightning rod?
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Even from a journalistic perspective \u2013 and having encountered Lance Stroll a few times personally \u2013 one must admit, yes, he can be awkward. He barely answers questions, seems distant, disengaged.
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Nothing new there. But let\u2019s not forget: those same traits made Kimi Raikkonen<\/a> a cult figure and fan favorite.
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With Stroll, it\u2019s the opposite. Why? Is it really just about his sometimes mediocre performances? Is he truly as underwhelming as his critics claim \u2013 or is that just a tired myth?
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Admittedly, it\u2019s hard to judge. Stroll is a case of light and shadow. Yes, there are some weak days \u2013 like in Sao Paulo last year, when he crashed on the formation lap, prompting Brazilian fans to chant \u201cDrugovich, Drugovich\u201d, calling for the reserve driver.<\/p>\n

\"Felipe <\/p>\n

Felipe Drugovich, Aston Martin<\/p>\n

Photo by: Zak Mauger \/ Motorsport Images<\/p>\n

But there are other days, too: in wet or mixed conditions, Stroll often finds himself among the gainers, not the victims. On certain tracks \u2013 ones he clearly enjoys more \u2013 like Baku or Monza, he sometimes shines and has even stood on the podium there.
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So yes, maybe Stroll is a “mood driver”. But he\u2019s not alone \u2013 even Hamilton, the most successful driver in F1 history, has had his mood-driven weekends.
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Of course, Stroll\u2019s talent doesn\u2019t compare with Hamilton\u2019s. And naturally, his inconsistency puts him a step behind team-mate Fernando Alonso<\/a>.
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But a glance at the 2025 standings tells a slightly different story: until Spain, Stroll had scored all of Aston Martin\u2019s points this season, with several quietly effective races \u2013 and in Monaco, he pulled off the only truly bold overtake of the race, against Nico Hulkenberg<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"Lance <\/p>\n

Lance Stroll, Aston Martin Racing<\/p>\n

Photo by: Peter Fox \/ Getty Images<\/p>\n

The bottom line? No, Stroll may never be world champion \u2013 but he\u2019s also a better racer than his reputation suggests.
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And like the other 19 drivers, he deserves a fair assessment. Regarding his injury \u2013 which stems from a pre-season cycling accident two years ago \u2013 it\u2019s safe to say he knows his own body better than the armchair experts.
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And even those who do have medical knowledge beyond the scope of a Google search have likely never had Stroll\u2019s right wrist under their X-ray.
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Speculating on medical decisions from a distance is a futile exercise. If the pain calls for surgery, so be it. The idea that he\u2019d willingly risk missing his home Grand Prix in Canada? Hard to imagine.
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There are claims Stroll lost his temper behind the scenes after a Q2 exit in Barcelona. Whether or not that\u2019s true \u2013 and whether the supposed frustration wasn\u2019t simply directed at the pain \u2013 we\u2019ll never know. But if it was frustration, that shows he does care.
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This is another frequent criticism of Stroll: that he appears indifferent (at least outside the car). True, he doesn\u2019t score many points for charm.
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But maybe he\u2019s just being honest? Maybe he really doesn\u2019t feel like answering the same recycled questions from a mob of sweaty reporters?
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Because part of the truth is this: if there\u2019s one driver who doesn\u2019t need the F1 media circus, it\u2019s Stroll. He owns the safest seat in Formula 1 \u2013 literally. He doesn\u2019t need self-promotion or PR games. And in that sense, perhaps it\u2019s time we reassess Stroll position in the sport.<\/p>\n

\"Lance <\/p>\n

Lance Stroll, Aston Martin Racing, Adrian Newey, Chief Technical Officer of Aston Martin F1<\/p>\n

Photo by: Zak Mauger \/ Motorsport Images via Getty Images<\/p>\n

Let\u2019s flip the argument on its head. Imagine your father owns a Formula 1 team. Imagine he hires the best car designer in the sport\u2019s history<\/a>. Imagine you get to decide your own future in racing. Imagine you\u2019re just 26 \u2013 not 43\u2026
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By that measure, Lance Stroll should be the one sleeping best every week.
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And yet, he had the courage to sit out a race in Spain. That deserves respect. True motorsport fans know \u2013 especially since the tragic accident that claimed the life of Greg Moore at the 1999 Champ Car finale in Fontana \u2013 that no one should drive a race car with a compromised hand. Stroll made the right call, for sure.<\/p>\n

Photos from Spanish GP – Race<\/p>\n

In this article<\/p>\n

Frederik Hackbarth\n<\/p>\n

Formula 1\n<\/p>\n

Lance Stroll\n<\/p>\n

Aston Martin Racing\n<\/p>\n

Be the first to know and subscribe for real-time news email updates on these topics<\/p>\n

Subscribe to news alerts<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"After last year\u2019s Spanish Grand Prix in Barcelona this column wished Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff a good…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":151860,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4103],"tags":[971,4199,61562,707,4200,9258,27221,79,16,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-151859","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-f1","8":"tag-aston-martin-racing","9":"tag-f1","10":"tag-f1-spanish-grand-prix","11":"tag-formula-1","12":"tag-formula1","13":"tag-lance-stroll","14":"tag-spanish-gp","15":"tag-sports","16":"tag-uk","17":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/114613298677408042","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/151859","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=151859"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/151859\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/151860"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=151859"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=151859"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=151859"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}