F1 News, Reports and Race Results

Frustrated Stroll takes aim at Williams after poor Aussie weekend

Lance Stroll delivered a critical view of his race weekend in Australia, but also cast doubts over the level of performance of Williams' FW41.

From the outset on Sunday, the Canadian was on the back foot, losing a spot at the start before finding himself struggling for pace all afternoon.

Fighting for P13 was the best Stroll could hope for, but ultimately it was also a battle he lost to Sauber's Charles Leclerc.

"We were in the wrong mode on the first lap and that is the reason Ocon got me," Stroll said.

"We also have none of the extra power we need for the safety car restart which is where I lost the place to Leclerc.

"We are just basically trying to get the car to the end of the race instead of racing. There was a lot going on today with big issues that cost us a lot of race time."

The frustrated 19-year-old has yet to understand his new FW41 mount, a car which he feels is currently a handful, and which could remain that way until a major upgrade is introduced in Spain.

"You cannot perform with this car, it's as simple as that," a despondent Stroll told Le Journal de Montreal newspaper.

"The team made a mistake during practice on Friday and I had to stop the car. We lost precious time. And on Sunday, nothing worked well. Quite the contrary."

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Michael Delaney

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