Stroll keeps it short after shock quali exit: 'Maybe you should ask them'

Speaking after the session the Canadian driver sounded dejected about Aston Martin’s recurring issues. “Generally, the car goes backwards throughout the weekend, so I am not surprised [to qualify P19],” he said.

When asked why his weekends seemed to be regressing rather than improving, Stroll retorted: “Maybe you should go ask them [the team],” before concluding the interview.

Stroll endured a tough afternoon at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodríguez, managing only 19th on the grid in a session where the AMR25 once again lacked competitiveness.

The Silverstone-based outfit has frequently started race weekends with promise, only to lose pace as conditions evolve. Stroll’s run in Mexico followed the same pattern.

After sitting out FP1 to allow reserve driver Jak Crawford some track time, he returned to finish P10 in FP2 and P13 in final practice.

Despite his struggles, though, Stroll is still very close to Aston Martin teammate Fernando Alonso in the standings, trailing the Spaniard by just five points after 19 rounds, 37 to 32, in what has been a mixed campaign for Aston Martin.

Fernando Alonso weighed in on the McLaren title fight between Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris, saying Max Verstappen “will make the difference” as Red Bull have found the right direction with their car.

He noted McLaren’s earlier dominance, but highlighted their post-summer drop-off with no wins since Zandvoort. Piastri leads by 14 points over Norris, while Verstappen has won three of the last four races and sits 40 points behind the Australian with five races remaining.

For the Mexico City Grand Prix, though, Norris has landed a heavy coup against both of his title rivals by taking pole position ahead of Verstappen in P5 and Piastri in P7.

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