Stroll not proud of beating Jacques Villeneuve's record

Nov.22 (GMM) Lance Stroll insists he had “no idea” he has become the most experienced Canadian driver in Formula 1 history.

The Aston Martin driver told Le Journal de Montreal newspaper in Las Vegas that his 166th grand prix last time out in Brazil moved him beyond 1997 world champion Jacques Villeneuve’s career tally.

“I had no idea I was on par with him,” the 26-year-old, who unlike Villeneuve has never won a single race in his eight seasons on the grid so far.

Stroll, whose billionaire father Lawrence owns Aston Martin, said his and Villeneuve’s race tally is not particularly comparable. “We have a lot more races in F1 these days.”

He also said career longevity alone is not something he is particularly proud of.

“You can always do things differently and better,” said Stroll, who is subject to regular criticism about his performance. “Competitive cars always help you do better, that’s for sure.”

Indeed, Aston Martin’s in-season car development since an impressive start to the 2023 season has been poor. “I enjoy the weekends with fast cars in which I felt good and which were nice to cross the finish line in a good position.

“I have also been in the other situation with bad cars and bad races,” Stroll added. Brazil 2024 was particularly dire for the Montreal-born driver, as he spun into retirement on the formation lap.

“I’m looking to the future,” said Stroll, after team technical director Dan Fallows was recently ousted. He will be replaced by Adrian Newey from early 2025.

“I want to be more competitive and I want the team to be more competitive too,” he insisted. “That was the case at the beginning of last season when we were fighting in the leading pack. With the ambitions we have, we can fight for victories in the future.”