Stroll 'has arrived' in F1 - Lowe

Williams chief technical officer Paddy Lowe says Lance Stroll signaled his arrival in Formula 1 with his performances over the last two races.

Stroll endured a difficult start to the season, only making Q3 on one occasion from the opening six races and failing to score a point in a competitive Williams car. However, after his first top-10 result in Canada – finishing ninth – Stroll then followed up with a hugely impressive drive to finish third in Azerbaijan, securing a podium in the eighth race of his career.

Having already stated the importance of the Montreal result, Lowe believes Baku showed Stroll has another level which he is able to deliver at consistently.

"I remember after Canada feeling it could be a major turning point for his Formula 1 career," Lowe (pictured) said. "It felt like his F1 career started that afternoon in Canada and that would give him the confidence going forward as we know he has the talent.

"It was terrific to see that was the case [in Baku] as he was indisputably in the game. He has arrived in the sport. The number of people who said to me how happy they were to see him competing at that level so it was terrific.

"I hope we can put [criticism] behind us now. Lance doesn't need to look around for any references, he only needs to look at himself and he should be happy with what he sees. I think that is a real breakthrough. He has arrived for Formula 1."

With Lowe having worked with a number of world champions throughout his career so far, the former Mercedes and McLaren technical boss sees encouraging potential in Stroll at this early stage of his rookie season.

"Lance has got incredible talent and we've seen glimpses of that. Classically rookies break a lot of bits but he is not doing that and he is going quickly now he is in the groove to do it. He has got great race craft, which we saw in Canada and in Baku. Those are all the elements which make a great driver.

"I won't rush out and make predictions in any absolute sense but we are seeing the right stuff coming together, which is very encouraging for the future."