Fernando Alonso trolled by former F1 driver for his 'world champion' comment about Lance Stroll - "Is it April 1 yet?"

Former F1 driver Ralf Schumacher recently reacted to Fernando Alonso's bold comment about Lance Stroll being a future world champion.

It is clear that Lance Stroll is by no means the strongest driver on the grid and is nowhere near the top spot. He has even struggled against his own teammates and other drivers in the midfield table. This is why Fernando Alonso's claim was ridiculed by Ralf Schumacher.

On his official Instagram account, Ralf Schumacher posted a screenshot of the statement made by Fernando Alonso and wrote a caption in German:

"Sure. And Formula 1 cars can fly. Or is it April 1 yet?"

Fernando Alonso's bold claim was taken from a longer statement where the Spaniard praised Lance Stroll and how he has enough talent to be at the top in the future. He said:

"In Lance, the team has a driver who is super young, super talented and has the possibility to be world champion. To see him achieve that and have played a part in that, whether that's behind the wheel or not, will be special for me."

He added:

"He has the speed, and he has the talent. He has shown it many times, especially in wet conditions. I remember Lance's pole position in Turkey and some of his other excellent performances in the wet; to perform at that level in difficult conditions you have to have a special feeling with the car."

Though certain things in F1 can be completely unpredictable and come as a surprise to fans and teams, Lance Stroll becoming a future world champion is unlikely, at least in the coming few years.

As long as F1 has strong young drivers like Max Verstappen, Charles Leclerc, George Russell, etc. in top teams, Lance Stroll does not have a chance to win a world championship.

However, things might change after 2026 when new power unit regulation changes are imposed.

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Fernando Alonso on Aston Martin's goals in the 2023 F1 season

Fernando Alonso shared his outlook on the 2023 F1 season during the launch of the Aston Martin AM23 car. He clearly stated that the team is not expecting to win races. However, he does feel that they have a good car that can be developed to compete and eventually overtake top teams.

Alonso said:

“I have my feet on the ground. I cannot say to anyone that we will be fighting for victories this year. I will lie if I say that. But at the same time, we want to have a good car to start with, and to work and develop that car throughout the season."

Fernando Alonso added:

“Maybe in the second part of the year, we can get closer. If there is an opportunity that is in changeable conditions, if the opportunity comes, we will not miss that opportunity. But at the beginning, I expect some difficult races until we find where the car operates, in which window we have to work with the set-up.”

Aston Martin finished seventh in the 2022 F1 constructors' standings. They will now be aiming to reach the top of the midfield table and fight among the likes of Alpine and McLaren.