Stroll: Racing Point 'absolutely' in the fight for fourth

Lance Stroll says Racing Point can “absolutely” compete for fourth place in this year’s Formula 1 constructors’ championship following its strong start to the 2019 season.

Despite being hamstrung in the development of its 2019 car by the financial difficulties faced by the old Force India operation prior to its takeover, Racing Point has managed to score points in every race so far this season.

The team took a double-score in Azerbaijan last weekend as Stroll and teammate Sergio Perez both finished inside the top 10, lifting the Silverstone-based squad up to fifth in the constructors’ championship and to within a point of McLaren in P4.

Speaking to Sky Sports F1 after the race in Baku, Stroll said there was no reason why the team could not set its sights on ending the year P4 in the constructors’ championship and emulate the achievements of Force India in 2016 and 2017.

“Absolutely, we’re aiming for a big result this season. There’s a long way to go though, it’s early days,” Stroll said.

“Every point is critical, and today was a great example of that, both cars in the points.

“It’s a big jump for the team, and we’re going to have to see some more of that over the year.”

Racing Point will bring its first major car update of the season to the Spanish Grand Prix next weekend after filtering through new parts at the opening four races in a bid to catch up with the time lost in the back-end of 2018.

“It’s going to be a development race all the way to the end of the season,” Stroll said.

“The midfield is very, very tight, just a couple of tenths between fourth to ninth teams, so it’s very, very tight, but it’s going to be a good battle all the way to the end and we’re going to try and bring some pace to Barcelona.”