Racing Point Captures a fundamental problem with F1
And no, not because they have a pink Mercedes.
Kimi Räikkönen“I have that Force India or whatever the f*ck it’s called!”
If a leopard is not known for changing its spots, then Racing Point is the complete opposite of that. Many teams in Formula 1 have undergone changes through the years as ownership has changed hands, different sponsors have come and gone, etc. but it seems none have changed quite so much as Racing Point. It's tricky for the drivers on the grid to even remember what the current team name is for them. But that being said, in recent times the team has stabilised somewhat. Sure, the name of the team keeps changing and will do again in 2021 when it merges with Aston Martin but as a whole, on the day to day level, it's levelling out. And the majority of that is thanks to one man: Sergio Perez.
For those of you who don't know, Racing Point used to be a team called Force India. To cut a long story short, the team was not doing very well financially in 2018 and the only way to save the team - and the jobs of everyone working for it - was to put Force India into administration. Lawrence Stroll and a consortium of investors bought the assets of the team, rebranded it and have been rebuilding the team into a competitive one since then. For more details on the history of the team, please read the article below.
The point with the above is that were it not for Perez starting the process of putting the team into administration, the team may not exist today on the F1 grid in any form. Perez didn't have to do this, he could have stepped away from the team and found a seat somewhere else - he's a talented and experienced F1 driver so I'm sure he would have had offers. But Perez decided to trigger the administration process and stick with the team. In doing so, he saved 400 jobs and prevented the team from going bankrupt using his own money. Someone create an appreciation post already. Furthermore, Perez then went and signed a five year contract with the team so that he could help develop it into a Championship winning team. The time and dedication he has put into it is not something anyone would expect but it just shows what a stand up guy he is.
Recently however, with Sebastian Vettel being fired by Ferrari, there are talks of the four time World Champion joining Racing Point from 2021 onwards. Ordinarily, you'd think 'ok, fine - Perez and Vettel would be awesome teammates together and it would certainly spice things up a bit in F1.' But sadly it's not as easy as that - because of Lance Stroll.
Lance Stroll"I dont' mind whoever I have as a teammate."
Lance started off his F1 career with Williams at the age of eighteen and now that he's in his fourth season of F1, his best result was a third place finish in Baku back in his debut season in 2017. And if anyone can remember that race, it was a wild one where a lot was happening and many drivers were out of position. Damn entertaining but not your typical F1 race. Since then, Lance has been trundling around near the back of the grid for the most part. I'm not saying he doesn't have potential as a driver but when you get to Formula 1, you're meant to be a cut above the rest, regardless of what car you're in - take Alonso in the McLaren for example, not any driver could have gotten that much performance out of such a bad car. So how come Lance is still in Formula 1 if he's just an average driver on the whole? Because his Dad owns the team. Some of you may disagree with this but logically, if Lawrence Stroll wasn't financing the team, Lance wouldn't even have made it into Racing Point in the first place.
Lance is only 21 years old at the moment and has plenty of time for a lengthy F1 career ahead of him - but he should be relegated back to Formula 2 and/or Formula 3 for the foreseeable future first to build up his driving skill and prove that he actually deserves his spot in Formula 1 - a category of motor racing that is known globally for having the best drivers...in the world. Which he isn't. There are also a number of drivers in both F2 and F3 who are older than Lance is now who are working their butts off to just get a chance in F1. If Lance leaves, there's plenty of time for him to come back. Now he's not the only driver on the grid that shouldn't be there *cough* Grosjean *cough* but in this case, it casts a light on a major problem in the sport.
And that problem is drivers being able to buy their way into the sport when they don't have the talent to match their wallet. Perez has been in F1 since 2011 and has had several podium finishes. He should have won a few races by now but his commitment to staying with Force India/Racing Point since he joined them back in 2014 has arguably prevented him from reaching the top step. But what he lacks in race wins, he makes up for with what he has brought to the sport. In a predominantly white sport, Perez comes from a minority background and has become a role model for people everywhere that a person of colour is able to not only get into Formula 1, but stay there long term. It's largely down to his presence on the grid that the Mexican Grand Prix was revised and made a permanent fixture on the calendar - and not just for Formula 1. And if you've seen that venue, you know it's a great one and has seen some excellent racing there since its revival alongside being the track where Hamilton has sealed World Championships. The stadium section alone is magnificent and unlike anything else on the racing calendar.
Perez is a mature driver who is hungry to win, has the experience to do so and develop a team at the same time, paving a way for it to have a sustainable future. He works hard at work worth doing and has demonstrated his commitment in ways other drivers simply wouldn't. So if Vettel is to join the team in 2021 (and I'm not saying he shouldn't) Perez is the obvious choice to keep as his teammate. At a time when Formula 1 claims to want to make the sport more diverse and ensure equal opportunities for everyone, it is the responsibility of the teams and drivers as well to ensure that they send out the right message.
If, after saving 400 jobs from getting axed, saving a team from bankruptcy with your own money and signing a five year contract with the same team, you get dropped from the same team for the simple reason that your much slower teammate's Dad owns the team, then something is quite simply wrong with the sport and it sends out completely the wrong message. It essentially says that even if you work hard, commit and dedicate yourself to something long term that you believe in instead of choosing an easy route, it doesn't count for anything because some rich person can just come along and toss you aside and replace you. Now to me, that doesn't sound right.
Keep Lance around if you must, make him a development driver so that he can learn a thing or two to make him a better driver, but if Vettel - or anyone else comes to the team - he shouldn't replace Perez. It doesn't make any sense and goes against the very things the sport is supposedly trying to promote. When asked at the Hungarian Grand Prix last weekend about the situation, Stroll said he didn't mind who will be his teammate next year - a comment that came across as quite pretentious as his future shouldn't be guaranteed at the team. He should say that if he's there, he doesn't mind instead of treating it as a foregone conclusion. Drivers should be in F1 because of their talent, not because they can buy their way in.
Racing Point have an opportunity here that will impact Formula 1 one way or another. Equal opportunities for all is not something that will be fixed overnight but making the right decision here would be a very good place to start. For a team that's constantly changed over the years, it would be a bit ironic if it didn't go with the times and keep changing to match them, promoting hard work and equal opportunities in the process. If a four time World Champion like Vettel isn't even safe from the chopping block, then how can Lance be? And besides, if Lance does get dropped, Lawrence can always buy him another seat somewhere else.
What do you think? Does Perez deserve to keep his seat in Formula 1 and at the very least, get to see out his contract with Racing Point? Should Stroll be relegated? Let me know in the comments below.
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Comments (40)
Having major financial backing is nothing new in F1 but generally the world’s best get the seats available.
But should Perez have to make way from Racing Point, just so Lance can have an F1 seat, it will be an absolute travesty.
Up until the weekend, Perez has always out qualified and out performed Stroll.
Perez deserves so much better. With all this talk of unity, justice should also come with it. Perez deserves it for his loyalty to the cause.
I agree. If Perez was to get the axe just to keep Lance in any other year, it still wouldn't be great but the timing of it this year is especially poignant and would send out the wrong message in my opinion.
Well said and written! Lance Stroll is in F1 and racing. in general, because of his father. Or, should I say, his father's money. Stroll is a "back of the pack" driver who lacks the ability and raw motivation of his team mate. Perez is an exciting driver to watch. He has his backing (money) as well with Carlos Slim but he earned it with his performance over the years. It's sad to see this kind of situation in the sport but, unfortunately, it happens everywhere under different settings. Thanks, for the excellent article.
I rarely read an entire article just because I'm interested in it. And I really concentrated on this one! Epic stuff Thiemo, I agree too. Even though Stroll has shown in the past few weeks that he does have speed, Vettel and Perez would be a far better team. Let's hope Lawrence does what's right for Racing Point and give them a title for their amazing comeback in 2018.
Thanks Kiran :) It frustrates me that we could lose an awesome driver (and all round nice chap) for such a silly reason. Fingers crossed Lawrence's puts his personal feelings aside here when it comes to Lance and keeps Perez.
Unfortunately owning the team that your son drives for makes it difficult to put aside feelings. To your point, Thiemo, Lance has shown he can drive, but just like a lot of drivers can he continue to be competitive? We will see who can keep/get...
Read moreI find that people can often get caught up in what others are saying, particularly in a community as tight as the F1 fandom, and I think this is the case with Lance Stroll. Repeatedly, Perez has stated that Lance is formidable on race pace, and it used to be true that he faltered in Qualifying, but he said he has worked on that, and it seems he has. In 2020 so far, he’s done well to roughly match Sergio, who is - by your own admission - an incredibly talented driver (and one that arguably should get a shot at a top team). It’s also worth noting that Perez brings big money from Mexico through sponsorship, and while I know that earning sponsorship is very different to being born into the right family, that has helped Perez along, and frankly, it’s most likely squandered opportunities for other, equally talented drivers along the way. With that said, there’s no way Sergio Perez should lose his seat - I’m with you on that. The only thing I disagree with in this article is the statement that Lance is not deserving of an F1 drive. I think he is, and there are several drivers that should go before Lance loses his seat. We called him a bad driver before he even get the chance to prove himself, all because of his financial backing - something that many other drivers (including Lando Norris, whose backing is of familial origins and not sponsorship-based) have in some way, shape or form.
[On a side note, that wasn’t a dig at Lando. I think he’s performed brilliantly in 2020, and really come into his own]
I had to stop reading at the point you mention Perez being a minority POC. By the same logic so was Alonso, Fisichella, Ascari, Fangio, Andretti, Sainz... I could literally going on for a while. F1 has also been immensely diverse throughout its history. Hell a Thai prince used to race in the 50s. I do agree that there is a problem with allowing paid drivers, every initiative to combat and address this has been shut down. Lower funded teams need the paid drives to even survive in the sport. This is the case in other top tier motorsport too. NASCAR and Indy Car both have paid drivers and the cost to entry is a lot less than in F1.