F1 News: Aston Martin Chief Defends Lance Stroll - 'We Want Action'

Aston Martin's team principal Mike Krack defended Lance Stroll amid criticism following a crash at the Chinese Grand Prix.

Jun 18, 2023; Montreal, Quebec, CAN; Aston Martin driver Lance Stroll (CAN) parades and salutes the / David Kirouac-USA TODAY Sports

Aston Martin's team principal Mike Krack has come to the defense of his driver Lance Stroll following a controversial incident at the Chinese Grand Prix. Krack has criticized the consistency of the stewards' decisions regarding both Stroll and Fernando Alonso's penalties.

In the aftermath of a contentious Chinese Grand Prix, Aston Martin's team boss, Mike Krack, staunchly defended his driver, Lance Stroll, against widespread criticism following a crash involving McLaren's Daniel Ricciardo. The incident, which forced Ricciardo to retire, has elicited diverse opinions from the F1 community regarding fault and race conduct.

At the heart of the controversy was a multi-car slowdown immediately after a safety car period, which saw Fernando Alonso, teammate to Stroll, inadvertently triggering a concertina effect. Stroll, caught in the sequence, collided with Ricciardo, leading to a heated exchange of blame post-race. Ricciardo accused Stroll of a lack of awareness, stating:

"Apparently I am the idiot here and it was my fault. I'm really trying my best not to say what I want to say, but f*** the guy." He later added, "You can see that the moment he brakes, he's immediately looking at the apex of turn 14. He is not looking at me at all and when he does look, he is already on my tail."

In response, Stroll described the incident as a natural outcome of the tightly packed field.

"There was like a concertina effect. I had Ricciardo stopping right in front of me and then I had nowhere to go even when I saw him brake like that. So I don't think it was just him. I think it's probably someone at the front with a brake and then a natural concertina effect," Stroll explained.

However, it was Krack's comments that highlighted a broader dissatisfaction with the regulatory decisions in Formula 1. Criticizing the stewards for their inconsistency, Krack drew parallels with previous races where penalties seemed disproportionately distributed.

“Lance was knocked around by Nico [Hülkenberg] in the opening lap in Bahrain, after which he had to fight his way through the field, but the perpetrator was not punished there. That was again super inconsistent. I still have that feeling," Krack pointed out in conversation with Motorsport.com.

"We've had more conversations in general about the style of racing and we think the punishment is harsher. But I think we want action in the sprint races, and we got that now! I think it was a fantastic fight, even though we did not turn out very well," he added. "In the race we saw someone who was pushed off the track in turn six and two Ferraris that did not give each other any space and that was not punished. Fernando did the same, an immediate ten-second penalty."