“I was cheering for Schumacher” - Stroll recalls memories of new teammate Alonso

Alonso makes the switch to Aston Martin for F1 2023 as Sebastian Vettel's replacement, who decided to retire at the end of last year.

It means Stroll has a third new teammate since joining the Silverstone-based outfit in 2019.

While there are 17 years between them, Stroll and Alonso have known each other for over 11 years.

The Canadian was part of Ferrari’s driver academy in 2012 when Alonso drove for the Italian manufacturer.

Speaking ahead of Aston Martin’s 2023 car launch, Stroll spoke about the childhood memories he had of his new teammate. 

“I do have a lot of memories watching this guy fight for championships against [Michael] Schumacher,” Stroll said. “I am not going to lie, I was cheering for Schumacher but it’s OK! It’s amazing to see him so motivated and I think just really excited to join the team. 

“I was here waking up at 8, 9 o’clock back in Canada when I was five, six years old. He was the guy to watch. It’s great to have him in the team, really excited. 

“I remember in my younger days when I was racing go-karts I was in the Ferrari junior programme and Fernando was racing for the team then. 

“We’ve known each other over the years so just excited to get things going.”

Alonso and Stroll will be hoping to take Aston Martin forward in 2023 after back-to-back P7 finishes in the constructors’ championship.

The team made significant progress in 2022 after a sluggish start, nearly beating Alfa Romeo to sixth overall in Abu Dhabi, missing out on countback.