Lance Stroll did not complete a qualifying lap in Melbourne, but is still allowed to start – The FIA explains why the 107 percent rule does not apply
Lance Stroll will be allowed to compete in the Formula 1 Australian Grand Prix despite missing qualifying. The FIA stewards granted the Aston Martin driver special permission even though he did not set a time within the 107 percent rule.
The decision was made after a detailed examination of several factors, including the performance of the car, Stroll’s experience, and technical problems with the Aston Martin.
FIA allows start despite missing qualifying time
In principle, drivers must not take more than 107 percent of the fastest Q1 time in qualifying to automatically qualify for the race. However, Stroll had not set a time at all because he was unable to take part in qualifying. And in fact, Stroll’s lap times in free practice were above the 107 percent mark.
In such cases, the FIA stewards can still grant permission to start if there are special circumstances. This is precisely what Aston Martin invoked in its application.
A key argument was that teammate Fernando Alonso had shown in the identical car that the AMR26 was basically fast enough to qualify. The team also pointed to Stroll’s experience.
Since his debut in 2017, the Canadian has already competed in 178 Grands Prix and collected a total of 325 World Championship points – including podium finishes and one pole position. He is also very familiar with Melbourne, having competed in the Australian Grand Prix seven times, with fourth place in 2023 as his best result.
In addition, Stroll has already completed 859 kilometers in the AMR26 this season. For the stewards, these points were “convincing enough” to allow an exception.
Technical problems prevent qualifying start
The real reason for Stroll’s missed qualifying participation was a technical defect. A damaged oil line was discovered on the Aston Martin, so the team decided not to send the car out on the track as a precaution.
The team had already been struggling with problems with the Honda power unit. According to team boss Adrian Newey, there was simply not enough time to rebuild the car in time for qualifying.
“Lance was unlucky today with an ICE problem that kept his car in the garage during practice,” Newey explains. Once the issues had been resolved, there was not enough time left to participate in qualifying. Stroll himself also speaks of a difficult weekend. “We had a few problems that prevented us from getting the laps in we needed,” he says. “The people in the garage worked really hard, but there just wasn’t enough time to rebuild the car before qualifying.”
In fact, the Canadian has hardly had any driving time so far. “We’ve only done three laps this weekend,” said Stroll. Accordingly, there are naturally some doubts ahead of the race: “Yes, of course there are concerns.”
Starting from the back of the field
In addition to Stroll, two other drivers without qualifying times will also be allowed to participate in the race: Max Verstappen and Carlos Sainz. Verstappen was eliminated in qualifying after an accident in Turn 1, while Sainz, like Stroll, was unable to compete in the Williams due to technical problems.
However, both had previously set sufficiently fast times in the practice sessions, so their eligibility to start was a formality under the 107 percent rule.
According to the regulations, all three drivers will start the race from the back of the grid—but not from the pit lane. The current sporting regulations stipulate that drivers without a qualifying time are placed behind all classified drivers on the starting grid. The order is based on the last session with measured times, in this case the second free practice on Friday. This means that Verstappen is likely to start from 20th place, ahead of Sainz and Stroll.
Williams also experiencing problems: Sainz without qualifying
The case of Carlos Sainz also shows that Aston Martin was not the only team with technical difficulties. Williams is also having a difficult weekend.
Team boss James Vowles confirms several problems with the power unit. “We didn’t have a clean weekend,” he explains. In the end, only one car was able to take part in qualifying.
Sainz himself speaks of a “very difficult weekend full of reliability issues.” It was particularly frustrating that the Williams had worked without any problems during winter testing.
“All the reliability issues we didn’t have in Bahrain suddenly appeared here,” says the Spaniard. As a result, the Williams driver hardly got any driving time: “Just a few laps in FT1, a few laps in FT2 and then nothing at all.”
There were also new difficulties in FT3. “We had a problem with the ERS and couldn’t fix it in time for qualifying,” explains Sainz. This means that he too will start the race in Melbourne with minimal preparation – just like Lance Stroll.
