Despite Rocket Ship Allegations, Max Verstappen and Co. Unexpectedly Destroyed by Lance Stroll

As the world of Formula 1 takes a break from racing, sadly, so do we! So what does everyone whose lives revolve around the sport do? Sit back, relax, and focus on something else for once apart from F1. Absolutely not! We revisit all the 12 races of the season and pluck out interesting tidbits from all of them. This is exactly what the latest episode of the F1 Nation podcast is all about. Interestingly enough, as the host and guests Tom Clarkson, Natalie Pinkham, and Damon Hill went poking around, they found out Lance Stroll has the mighty Max Verstappen beat in one aspect of racing.

That’s right, none other than Lance Stroll has gotten the better of Verstappen in perhaps the most important aspect of racing, speed. Despite being accused of driving a rocketship, Verstappen, somehow Stroll was faster than Verstappen on one occasion. This one occasion, however, puts the Aston Martin man on top of the charts.

Tom Clarkson said, “Upto and including the Belgian GP which driver has set the fastest speed trap speed of the season so far. We are talking during the races themselves.” Clarkson reiterated, “Whose been fastest through the speed trap this year?” He continued and said, “We only need the name but you’ll impress us all if you can tell us where it was and how fast they were going as well.”

Pinkham gave up and said, “Oh my god, I don’t know! I’ve got to hand this over to Damon (Hill).” However, Clarkson coursed an answer from Pinkham and she went not with the obvious answer of Max Verstappen and said Alex Albon. Hill, on the other said went with Esteban Ocon.

However, both were wrong and Clarkson revealed the surprise winner. He revealed, “Quite a surprising answer to this one, actually! Lance Stroll, Miami, 348 kph which is 216 miles an hour.”

To this revelation, both Pinkham and Hill unanimously agreed they would’ve never guessed correctly while Hill admitted, “That is quite fast.”

Read More: As Pressure Mounts to Sack Lance Stroll, Aston Martin Boss Brutally Assesses Struggling Star’s Performance

Now, we know being fast in one of the speed traps of the season does not win you trophies. However, it does show what an incredible job Aston Martin has done this season. Although, it’s of no use if he can’t use the car’s prowess to his advantage and get back to his old self. However, this isn’t the only time Verstappen and Co. have lost to the people at Aston Martin.

Max Verstappen expresses his regrets of losing an old ally to Aston Martin

In the most indecisive turn of events, Honda committed itself to Aston Martin from 2026 onwards. The Silverstone-based team always wanted to branch out and away from Mercedes power units. When Honda became available, despite their reluctance to continue in the sport, Aston Martin snatched up the Japanese manufacturer’s service. This scenario made the entire Red Bull family really upset. In fact, Verstappen even expressed this opinion to the public during an interview.

“From our side, it’s a bit unfortunate how that all turned out,” Verstappen told the press. “A few years ago they said they were going to stop so then Red Bull set up its whole engine division and now they come back. It’s a shame really. We’ve always had and still have a good relationship so seeing them go to Aston Martin was a shame but at the same time we are very excited on our side from 2026 onwards with Ford.”

WATCH THIS STORY: How is Aston Martin Allying with Honda for its F1 Title Challenge from 2026?

Now that Red Bull will start using its own power trains and their partnership with Ford, there is no chance of a turnaround. We are not sure what to expect. But, it will be interesting to see a clearly already extremely fast Aston Martin car run a Honda engine.