Let's face it, the life of a billionaire businessman ain't all bad. Yes, you have the occasional 2-hour meeting to discuss what fifty-foot yacht to buy, but apart from that, life is pretty much taken care of. But aside from all the materialistic items that can end up in a billionaires shopping cart, money has the ability to buy one major factor in sport - opportunity.
Don't get me wrong, Lance Stroll is a talented young driver and F3 European Champion. However, without billionaire father Lawrence, I doubt he would be anywhere near the 20 seats that F1 provides.
At 19, Lance Stroll became one of the grids youngest drivers in 2017, when his father paid over $80 million for a seat at a struggling Williams. Not only did this place him next to the legendary Felipe Massa, but also gave him his first chance to prove he wasn't a 'pay-to-play' racer. Looking back, this wasn't the best idea for both Lance Stroll and his financially backed father. Over 2 seasons at Williams, Stroll racked up a total of 49 points with an average finish of 11th in 2017 and 16th in 2018. However, according to Lawrence Stroll, this was the fault of the car, not his underperforming son, and in his opinion, Williams was moving further and further backwards. I guess this proves that money can't fix everything?
In mid-2018, Lawrence Stroll bought his son another lifeline with his takeover of Force India for a sum of £90 million + £15 million in dept charges. With his investment, Lawrence was patented as a saviour and a hero (as if being a billionaire wasn't enough of an ego boost). He saved the livelihoods of countless engineers and factory workers, but it wasn't great news for the current driver line-up. As I said before, money buys opportunity in Formula One, and no matter your track record or ability, it also buys you a seat at your dads new racing team. Lance Stroll was signed as the new driver for the newly formed Racing Point almost immediately, leaving Esteban Ocon and Sergio Perez to race for their seats for the remainder of the season.
The next 2 years of Lance Stroll's career truly showcased the skill-gap between himself and his team-mate. Sergio Perez was selected as Stroll's teammate for the 2019 and 2020 seasons and to say it was a one-sided matchup would be an understatement. Over 2 seasons, Sergio Perez had a collective 177 points in 36 races. In comparison, Lance Stroll had a collective 96 points in the same period, as well as racing an additional race. With both cars identical and driver skill on full display, I think you're now starting to get the picture?
However, that hasn't stopped Lawrence Stroll from tying down his son to another F1 seat for 2021, with his investment in bringing Aston Martin back to F1. Although this particular investment set the Canadian billionaire back $235.6 million, the message is quite clear. Lance Stroll will remain in Formula One until one of two things happen:
1. He gets bored.
2. His dad runs out of money.
Let me make it clear, Lance Stroll does NOT deserve a seat in F1, just based on performance alone. However, if you were a struggling F1 team, are you going to say no to your billionaire backer? Absolutely not!
Unfortunately for F1, this is simply the same beast wearing a different face. No matter the decade, men of money have descended upon F1 and turned it into their personal playground. Meanwhile, young kids who have spent their entire childhoods racing around on second-hand go-karts will never get a shot at a Formula One seat, because rich kids like Lance Stroll need something to do on weekends outside of driving their dads Lamborghini around the streets of Monaco.
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