Stroll tested with Williams between Canada and Baku!

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Lance Stroll's form in Baku is partly the result of extra testing conducted by the Canadian between the Montreal and Baku races, according to Williams Paddy Lowe.

After Stroll's points-scoring finish in his home race two weeks ago, which undoubtedly boosted the teenager's confidence, the rookie clocked in yesterday with an impressive P8 in qualifying in Baku.

Stroll explained that his nascent level of performance has been the result of set-up changes at Williams, with the Canadian reverting back to settings used previously this season and which are similar to those used by team mate Felipe Massa.

The changes have apparently come about as a result of an extensive day of testing done on June 14 at the Circuit of the Americas in Austin.

Stroll spent the day behind the wheel of a 2014-spec Williams FW36, racking up mileage and sampling various basic set-up configurations!

"He went to Austin last week driving the 2014 car," said Williams tech boss Paddy Lowe.

"They did a few experiments with set-up, looking at some of the differences between his set-up and Felipe's set-up, and some of that's been brought forward here and I think it's put him in a much better place."

Impressive Stroll rolls back car set-up to shine in Baku qualy

Stroll benefitted last year from a private test programme with Williams, the young charger running all over the world between his Euro F3 series races, acclimatizing himself with F1.

That learning process is continuing this year with more test days scheduled between each F1 race.

"It's just track time," Lowe added.

"They had a whole day to do some straightforward experiments with stable tyres, good sets of tyres, run a programme.

And they're fairly generic set-up directions that apply equally on a 2014 car as on a 2017 car.

"The trouble on a Friday [at a grand prix] is you've got limited time, limited numbers of tyres, they're often not the same type of tyre, then the track's moving quite quickly as well.

"It's a great advantage to be able to go and spend a whole day on something."

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Phillip van Osten

Motor racing was a backdrop from the outset in Phillip van Osten's life. Born in Southern California, Phillip grew up with the sights and sounds of fast cars thanks to his father, Dick van Osten, an editor and writer for Auto Speed and Sport and Motor Trend. Phillip's passion for racing grew even more when his family moved to Europe and he became acquainted with the extraordinary world of Grand Prix racing. He was an early contributor to the monthly French F1i Magazine, often providing a historic or business perspective on Formula 1's affairs. In 2012, he co-authored along with fellow journalist Pierre Van Vliet the English-language adaptation of a limited edition book devoted to the great Belgian driver Jacky Ickx. He also authored "The American Legacy in Formula 1", a book which recounts the trials and tribulations of American drivers in Grand Prix racing. Phillip is also a commentator for Belgian broadcaster Be.TV for the US Indycar series.