Fraser MasefieldLance Stroll narrowly missed out on what would have been a second podium in as many races but the bigger picture is that he thankfully emerged unscathed after a huge crash late in Sunday’s Tuscan Grand Prix at Mugello.
Stroll was running a strong fourth after the race had been red flagged at the re-start and was running a strong fourth before a technical failure, likely a puncture, saw him leave the circuit at Arrabbiata 2, skipping across the gravel before impacting the barriers at speed.
Running P4 and within sight of a podium – but frustration strikes for @lance_stroll with 17 laps to go 😬#TuscanGP 🇮🇹 #F1 pic.twitter.com/qX71D4QsdX
— Formula 1 (@F1) September 13, 2020
“First of all, I’m OK after what was a big impact,” said Stroll afterward. “We’re still investigating the cause of the crash. It all happened so quickly, but it felt like a puncture. We need to go away and look at the data and fully confirm the reasons for it. There were some really strong points on the table and we were closing on Ricciardo for the final podium place before the accident, and it was all set up for an exciting finale. I’m pleased with how the upgraded package performed this weekend, and it gives us a good platform for the coming races.
“We were able to make a good start to the race and get a good launch in the restart to keep out of trouble until late on. It was an unfortunate result and sometimes that’s how the cookie crumbles, but I’ll take the positives!”
It wasn’t all bad news for the BWT Racing Point team, partnered by Acronis, however, as Sergio Perez was able to pilot his car home a strong fifth after what was a chaotic race.
Such a shame what happened today. We were in a really good position, fighting for the podium! I'm grateful I walked away with no injuries and I want to thank @F1 and the @fia for all the safety standards they have implemented over the past years. We will be back stronger 💪 pic.twitter.com/kX0Pr3QIt7
— Lance Stroll (@lance_stroll) September 13, 2020
“A challenging day for the team on many fronts with two race stoppages, including a big accident for Lance caused by what looks like a puncture,” added Otmar Szafnauer, CEO & Team Principal. “It was very bad luck because Lance was fighting for the podium all afternoon. He was running in fourth place and the failure happened just as we asked him to push up and overtake Ricciardo for third. Fortunately, he is ok after a significant impact with the tyre barrier at turn nine. As for Checo, he raced well, but we couldn’t quite match the race pace of Albon and Ricciardo in the end.
“So we leave Mugello with ten more points and having closed slightly on third place in the Constructors’ Championship. A day of mixed fortunes in every sense as we cross the mid-way point in the season. After three triple-headers in a row, I have to say a huge well done to the team for their efforts in such a condensed period. We will aim to be even more competitive in the second half of the season and there were promising signs from the upgrade package, so we’re looking forward to the rest of the campaign.”
It was a day of mixed fortunes at the Tuscan GP 🎢#TuscanGP #F1 pic.twitter.com/ovbgYAb6eu
— BWT Racing Point F1 Team (@RacingPointF1) September 13, 2020
Craig Scarborough
Motorsport Technology