When one is asked to think of who the next world champion could be, few would put their money on Lance Stroll.
Son of business mogul Lawrence Stroll, Lance has not been in the running for a world championship and is not expected to challenge for one either, at least that is the way most F1 fans see it.
Part of this judgment comes due to the vast number of talented drivers on the circuit and perhaps the more telling part comes from the fact that Lance is yet to win a single Grand Prix.
However, his new teammate Fernando Alonso has certainly seen something in the young Canadian that he quite fancies.
Or, well yeah, he’s sucking up to his new boss.
That’s probably the more logical reason.
However, we aren’t complaining as it’s always good to see teammates sharing compliments.
This might even be a welcome break for Alonso, who saw his relationship with former teammate Esteban Ocon get completely destroyed over time.
Even apart from Ocon, Alonso doesn’t have the greatest track record when it comes to his dealings with teammates.
At the ripe age of 42, it seems like the Spaniard is keen to address that as his compliment for Lance goes to attest.
“I will use all my experience and all my knowledge to help the team shortcut the time that is needed to become world champions,” Alonso said in an interview.
With regard to Lance, Alonso’s thoughts were quite clear.
“In Lance, the team has a driver who is super-young, super-talented and has the possibility to be world champion.
“To see him achieve that and have played a part in that, whether that’s behind the wheel or not, will be special for me.”
Alonso was then asked if he thought Lance was an underrated driver.
“He has the speed, and he has the talent. He has shown it many times, especially in wet conditions,” Alonso said.
“I remember Lance’s pole position in Turkey and some of his other excellent performances in the wet; to perform at that level in difficult conditions, you have to have a special feeling with the car.”
Stroll may not have set the stage on fire during his time in F1, but it is worth noting that he had a reasonably good record in other categories.
However, him being a world champion might be a bit of a stretch, but then again, Alonso probably knows more about the sport than us.