The 2024 Formula 1 driver’s market saw several racers lose their race seats for the upcoming campaign.
Five rookies – or six depending on whether you include Liam Lawson – will arrive at the Australian Grand Prix to begin their first full seasons in the sport.
The early announcement of Lewis Hamilton’s move to Ferrari set off a sequence of events that meant only McLaren and Aston Martin ended up retaining both of their drivers.
It means that the pressure will immediately be on the new drivers to perform, with Jack Doohan potentially facing being replaced after a few races.
However, the arrival of a new crop of young drivers will also shine a spotlight on the more experienced racers on the grid.
The likes of Oliver Bearman and Franco Colapinto immediately impressed when stepping up from Formula 2 and if that trend continues when Andrea Kimi Antonelli, Isack Hadjar and Gabriel Bortoleto make their debuts in Melbourne, then some team principals might be questioning their driver choices.
A report from Auto Motor und Sport shares more details about this season’s driver pairings.
They explained that despite starting 166 Grand Prix in his career, many people in the paddock are beginning to doubt Lance Stroll’s ability.
Some even feel that they may already have a ready-made replacement waiting in the wings to take his place.
Many F1 paddock voices are beginning to doubt Lance Stroll’s ‘qualities’
The report from AMuS admits that the intra-team battle between Stroll and Fernando Alonso hasn’t been particularly tough for the Spaniard.
He outscored Stroll by 70 points to 24 in 2024, and the Canadian is on the longest run of any driver who raced last season without scoring a point.
Aston Martin did fall away towards the end of last year, regularly challenging Williams and Sauber for having the worst car on the grid, which emphasised just how good a job Alonso was doing.
The report states that ‘many voices in the paddock’ are now starting to doubt Stroll’s ‘qualities’.
READ MORE: Aston Martin driver Lance Stroll’s life outside F1 from net worth to girlfriend
They suggest that reserve driver Felipe Drugovich might put Alonso under more pressure than Stroll at this stage.
Brazilian fans were chanting for Drugovich after Stroll’s crash at Interlagos where he got trapped in the gravel on the formation lap of the Sao Paulo Grand Prix.
It’s hard to see Lawrence Stroll swapping out his son for Drugovich in 2025, with only one driver on Aston Martin’s radar that could threaten his position – Max Verstappen.
Lawrence Stroll might need to make difficult personal decision for the good of Aston Martin
Stroll will be getting ready to start work with Aston Martin very soon ahead of the 2025 season.
He was seen partaking in some winter sports on his social channels during the winter break, a pastime he shares an interest in with many other drivers on the grid.
The Canadian is slowly heading towards the list of drivers with the most F1 starts without a victory, currently topped by Nico Hulkenberg.
While that’s not a requirement for a driver racing for a team in the midfield, if Aston Martin are as strong as many expect them to be in 2026, then he’ll need to make his way onto the top step of the podium quickly.
READ MORE: All to know about Aston Martin F1 Team from team principal to lineage
If Aston Martin can convince Verstappen to leave Red Bull during the next era of F1 regulations, then Stroll may hope he’s signed to replace a retiring Alonso.
However, if that isn’t the case, then Stroll is the obvious man to replace but whether his father makes that decision is yet to be seen.
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