Lawrence Stroll has taken a brutal dig at his son Lance’s Williams stint, saying it was two years of torture for the two of them.
Lance has been a solid driver in F1 for the last few years. He has done fairly well with the cars and opportunities handed to him. It also helps that his father has significant pull in F1, and is able to secure his seat no matter what happens.
Lawrence is the owner of Aston Martin’s F1 team, and has Lance driving for them alongside Sebastian Vettel. Lawrence’s ambition is to make his team a title contender in the coming years, and Lance will be a key part of that project.
Speaking on the Beyond the Grid podcast, Lawrence took a brutal dig at his son’s Williams stint, and called the two years he spent there torturous.
“No, I haven’t thought about that,” Lawrence said, as quoted by Racingnews365.com.
“We started, as you know, with Williams – two years of torture – particularly when you’re used to coming off winning everything. You train for two to three hours every day, and watch what you eat, and you know the best you’re going to do is be 19th on any given weekend – it’s challenging.
“Getting in the car last year, which was the first year he had a (competitive) car, was very important, very important for everything, for all the work he’s put in.
Parenthood
Lawrence also talked about what goes through his mind when Lance suffers a crash or another dangerous incident.
“Terrifying, absolutely terrifying as a parent,” he continued.
“Watching, God forbid, your son crashing or watching anybody crash terrifying. I remember watching (Romain) Grosjean crash, so thoughts (like) that go through your mind.
“Then (Daniil) Kvyat hit Lance and turned him upside down at the restart, just after Grosjean’s crash. I was trying to recover from one and you get hit with a second.
“As a parent, it’s very difficult. I don’t think it ever gets any easier. Whether they’re eight years old or, in Lance’s case, just 22. But it’s the same,” he concluded.
Read more: Vettel engages in detailed conversation with Lawrence Stroll after trouble with son Lance