Aston Martin team boss Mike Krack has defended Lance Stroll's disappointing track record during the first half of the 2023 F1 season, insisting the Canadian "hasn't had a lot of luck this year".
While Fernando Alonso has so far enjoyed a remarkable maiden campaign with Aston Martin, delivering six podiums to himself and to his team, Stroll has significantly under-performed relative to the Spaniard.
The 24-year-old's best result in the first half of the season was his fourth-place finish in Melbourne, and last week he headed into F1's summer break with a 102-point deficit to his teammate in the Drivers' standings.
Stroll's shortfall has led pundits to question whether the latter still deserves to remain in the good graces of his father, Aston Martin F1 team owner Lawrence Stroll.
But Krack believes his driver should be given mitigating circumstances due to his pre-season cycling accident, a mishap from which Stroll fought back with fortitude insists the Aston team boss.
"Lance showed what a fighter he is when he jumped back in the car with broken wrists and a broken toe," Krack explained in an mid-season interview on the Aston Martin website.
"The heart it took to do that lifted everyone and got us going in a really positive frame of mind."
©AstonMartin
But Krack adds bad luck as another extenuating factor during his first twelve races in 2023.
"Lance hasn't had a lot of luck this year: aside from his broken bones, a few things have gone against him that really weren't his fault.
"The championship table tells a story, but inside the team we know what really happens."
On the other side of the Aston garage, the man that has carried the team to third in F1's Constructors' standings predictably received a raving review from Krack who singled out Alonso's Monaco Grand Prix weekend – where the two-time world champion finished second – as the high point so far of Aston's year.
"With Fernando in Monaco, it wasn't the performance on track, it was the commitment, the desire, the total focus.
"He knew he had a shot and the approach, the dedication. I've never seen anything like it.
"He's exceeded my expectations – and I had very high expectations. It's not what he does on track – that I expected – but it's the way he has integrated into the team.
"He's been exactly what we needed him to be: constructive when you have to be constructive; challenging when you have to be challenging.
"Even critical when being critical is what will move us forward. Understanding that balance is more difficult than people perhaps credit.
"I'm not going to make a prediction about his 33rd victory, but we are incredibly determined to do everything we can to make it happen."
Keep up to date with all the F1 news via Facebook and Twitter
