F1 driver endures disastrous GT3 debut with more than 8 MINUTES of penalties

Aston Martin emerged victorious in the opening round of the GT World Challenge Europe at Paul Ricard.

It was a six-hour endurance race held in both light and dark conditions, and the number 7 of Nicki Thiim, Marco Sorensen and Mattia Drudi would win the race.

They would only move into first position with nine minutes remaining after a small error from Mercedes-AMG Team Mann-Filter in the number 48 car allowed Thiim to dive past with nine minutes remaining in the race to take the win for the Comtoyou team.

While it was a great day for the Comtoyou Racing team, it was not a fantastic day for Aston Martin’s F1 star Lance Stroll, who was in the second car of the team.

Stoll's team, which were in car number 18 for the race, accrued over eight minutes of penalties, not the debut in this competition that the Canadian driver would have envisaged.

Marco Sorensen, Nicki Thiim, and Mattia Drudi drive the (#7) Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT3 EVO of team Comtoyou Racing during the 4th round of the GT World Challenge Europe (Getty Image)

The Canadian driver would have been keen for a victory, or at least a drive without as many penalties, as he looks to build confidence behind the wheel as Formula 1 action is paused for the remainder of April.

Stroll has endured a poor start to the F1 campaign, as has Aston Martin, as they have yet to collect a single point this season from the opening three grand prix.

The Formula One star has previously driven in other sports car races, having competed in the 24 Hours of Daytona in 2016 and 2018. Now he will be proud to add this GT3 experience to his CV, despite it not being one that may be considered the most memorable due to the eight minutes and 25 seconds’ worth of penalties.

This meant they would finish the race in 15th, as his teammate Mari Boya caused a collision that resulted in a stop-and-go penalty, while Stroll was penalised for blue flags and exceeding track limits.

Lance Stroll of Canada and Aston Martin F1 Team looks on in the Drivers Press Conference during previews ahead of the F1 Grand Prix of Japan (Getty Images)

Stroll and his teammates qualified P11 in their class for the race, with the Aston Martin F1 driver setting a fastest lap overall of a 1:54.472, just five thousandths slower than the time set by one of his teammates, Roberto Merhi.

Speaking about the event before the race, Stroll revealed that he had talks with Max Verstappen, who encouraged him to take part in the race, as reported by Planet F1.

The Canadian driver said: “We talked about whom to contact, and since he’s already involved in GT racing, we discussed it a bit.

“Everyone enjoys driving GT3 cars – they’re fun.”