Racing Point team principal Otmar Szafnauer says dropping Lance Stroll in 2021 was not possible because his contract lacked options similar to the ones in Sergio Perez’s deal that allowed the Mexican to be replaced by Sebastian Vettel.
Szafnauer confirmed that the team’s choice was between Perez and Vettel for 2021, which appeared to rule out the chance of Stroll ever being replaced.
The Race asked Szafnauer if there was ever any possibility of Stroll being dropped and what role Lawrence Stroll heading the consortium that owns the team played in this. Szafnauer pointed to the contractual situation and subsequently highlighted the progress made by Stroll – who holds fourth in the championship – so far this season.
“Lance has been with us for a couple of years, he’s a young man at 21 years old and, yeah, his father does own the team,” said Szafnauer.
“So when we looked to make a driver change because Sebastian became available, it would have been Checo because there are options in his contract and those options didn’t exist for Lance.”
He added: “Lance is still young and only in his second season with this team. He’s in the ascendancy, enjoying his strongest year in the sport so far and sits fourth in the championship off the back of a podium.
“And there is more potential to come. He’s clearly demonstrating his talent and is fully deserving of his place alongside Sebastian next year.”
Racing Point first had the idea of bringing in Vettel when Ferrari announced it was dropping the four-time world champion in mid-May.
Although Szafnauer repeatedly stated the team had drivers under contract and downplayed the possibility of a change, it soon became clear that Vettel was under serious consideration. But it also took time for Vettel to decide to commit to the team, having wanted to satisfy himself of its potential and his own desire to continue to race in F1.
“The idea came up after Ferrari announced that Sebastian wouldn’t be racing there next year and we saw that as an opportunity,” said Szafnauer.
“Lawrence does have a big say in what the team does as he’s a majority owner, but it was a collective decision at the end. He does have other people that he asked their opinions, and it was a collective decision.
“We took a bit of time to make the decision between Sergio and Sebastian, which just goes to show what a great job Sergio has done for us for the last seven years.
“However, with Aston Martin coming in and a bit of financial backing behind the team, a new factory happening in Silverstone, improving the team [by] adding 20% more personnel, we’ve got some infrastructure to that we’re embarking on to make this go faster.
“And therefore, a driver like Sebastian, who brings with them the experience of winning four world championships and 53 grand prix races, can only be beneficial for us.
“He will help us take that next step that we all need to take in the coming years so that we can consistently race among the top three, top four teams.”
Perez suggested yesterday that “a bit more clarity” on the possibility of him being dropped would have helped his search for a drive next year, but Szafnauer said that he gave as much information as was available given the uncertainty about whether Vettel would join.
He also confirmed Perez missing the two races held at Silverstone in August after testing positive for COVID-19 “had no correlation with” the team’s ability to drop him contractually.
“We did keep Sergio up to date as well as his manager, Julian [Jakobi],” said Szafnauer.
“When the decision is a difficult one and it hasn’t been made, there isn’t really much more that you can say. So I don’t think we could have said anything more, otherwise [we] would be guessing what the future was.”
Szafanuer did concede that the team was losing “quite a bit” by replacing a driver who has been a mainstay of the team since 2014.
He also wished Perez well in his search for another berth in F1.
“He knows the team well, he’s got loads of experience, he’s a tenacious racer on Sunday, he’s a good qualifier, rarely makes mistakes, brings home the points and if there’s a sniff of a podium, he’s usually there,” said Szafnauer.
“So we are giving away quite a bit, and I wish Checo the best of luck. He deserves to be in Formula 1 and I hope that he can he can find a spot and we’re racing against him next year.”
Szafnauer was also asked how confident he is in Vettel’s ability to deliver a strong level performance after recent struggles at Ferrari.
He pointed to Vettel still being in his prime and the experience he brings from top-line teams, which Szafnauer says made it logical to sign him.
“He’s 33 years old, he’s still in the prime of his career, he’s got a vast amount of experience, he’s still highly motivated to do well, he works really hard and we believe with our team and what we want to take it to the next level [that] Seb’s a perfect fit for that.
“And I’m confident he’ll race well. “
He also stressed that Vettel and Stroll will be free to race on equal footing, which is in line with the policy the team has usually employed.
