Stroll makes F1 history with 100th Q1 elimination at Monza

News summary

• Lance Stroll was eliminated in Q1 at Monza for the 100th time in his Formula 1 career.
• The Aston Martin driver becomes the first F1 racer to reach 100 Q1 exits since the three-stage knockout format was introduced in 2006.
• Stroll’s record includes 15 Q1 eliminations in both 2018 and 2025, while he remains the only driver to have combined the unwanted record with an F1 pole position.

Lance Stroll has made Formula 1 history — but not in the way any driver would want.

The Aston Martin driver was eliminated in Q1 at the 2026 Italian Grand Prix this Saturday (5), reaching 100 career exits from the opening qualifying segment and becoming the first driver to hit the three-digit mark in the modern knockout qualifying era.

Stroll entered the weekend at Monza with 99 Q1 eliminations, having reached the milestone at the Dutch Grand Prix. Another early exit at the Autodromo Nazionale Monza therefore completed one of the most unusual statistical records in F1.

The Canadian finished 22nd in qualifying, ending his session before Q2 and adding the 100th entry to a record that had already belonged exclusively to him since he surpassed Kevin Magnussen.

From Magnussen’s record to an unprecedented century

Stroll took sole possession of the record in April 2025, when he was eliminated in Q1 at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.

That was his 75th Q1 exit, moving him beyond Kevin Magnussen’s previous record of 74. At the time, Stroll had been eliminated in Q1 in 43.35% of his qualifying appearances.

The 2025 season subsequently made the statistic even more remarkable. Stroll accumulated a large number of further Q1 exits as Aston Martin struggled for qualifying performance, although he also demonstrated that the record cannot be separated entirely from the competitiveness of his machinery.

That contradiction is central to understanding Stroll’s career.

He has spent long periods driving cars that were fighting at the rear of the grid. His 2018 Williams campaign produced 15 Q1 eliminations, representing one of the worst qualifying seasons of his career. The team was regularly the slowest outfit in F1 that year.

Stroll also recorded 14 Q1 exits in 2019, his first season with Racing Point, before producing a dramatic reversal the following year.

The year Stroll did the exact opposite

The strongest argument against interpreting the record purely as a measure of driver performance is Stroll’s 2020 season. Driving the Racing Point RP20, he did not suffer a single Q1 elimination.

Instead, Stroll reached Q3 repeatedly and eventually claimed the only pole position of his F1 career at the Turkish Grand Prix.

That means Stroll’s résumé contains both extremes of qualifying: 100 Q1 eliminations and an F1 pole position.

His 2020 campaign also demonstrates how dramatically the competitiveness of a car can affect this statistic. A driver fighting at the front can survive Q1 with considerably more margin than one operating in a slow car where a few tenths can determine whether he progresses.

Stroll himself made precisely that argument after setting the unwanted record in 2025. He suggested that putting drivers from leading teams into a backmarker car for years would dramatically change their Q1 statistics.

There is therefore an important distinction between holding the record and being solely responsible for every qualifying failure that produced it.

Aston Martin has not made the record any easier in 2026

The 2026 season has provided another major contribution to Stroll’s tally.

Aston Martin has struggled to extract competitive qualifying pace from its new-generation package, while the team’s new Honda partnership has yet to translate into consistent performance near the front of the grid.

Stroll’s qualifying record this season has been particularly severe. He entered Monza after being eliminated in Q1 at every Grand Prix qualifying session in which he had competed, including a difficult Dutch Grand Prix weekend.

At Zandvoort, Stroll qualified 19th with a 1:13.818, while Fernando Alonso was 18th. The result gave Stroll his 99th Q1 elimination and left him one exit away from the century.

Formula 1’s own qualifying statistics also show how consistently Aston Martin has struggled in 2026. Alonso has generally been ahead of Stroll in the team-mate battle, but even the Spaniard has regularly found himself fighting outside the points-paying positions in qualifying.

The contrast was again evident at Monza, where Stroll’s 100th Q1 exit completed the record.

The 100 eliminations: every Q1 exit in Stroll’s career

The table below follows the 99-exit historical count entering Monza, with the Monza session added as number 100.

A statistical caveat is necessary. The term “Q1 elimination” is broader than simply “finished 16th or lower with a recorded Q1 lap.” The historical count used in contemporary reports includes cases where Stroll failed to set a time in Q1 and was classified RT, NC or without a time. This is relevant to events such as Azerbaijan 2021 and Australia 2022. Official FIA and Formula 1 records confirm those sessions and their classifications.

The historical qualifying records show the progression of Stroll’s career from his 2017 debut through the 2026 season, including his 2017 fourth-place qualifying result at Monza, his 2020 pole position and the repeated Q1 exits that ultimately produced the record.

The most important statistical detail is the zero in 2020. Stroll did not suffer a single Q1 elimination that season, despite the eventual career total reaching 100. That is why the record needs to be read in the context of car performance, team competitiveness and career longevity.

Monza adds another chapter to an unusual career

There is an additional layer of irony to Stroll’s milestone.

Monza is one of the circuits most closely associated with the Canadian’s strongest qualifying performance. In 2017, during his rookie season with Williams, Stroll qualified fourth for the Italian Grand Prix.

That result remains one of the biggest qualifying surprises of his career and came in a Williams that was nowhere near the front of the grid on a consistent basis.

Eight years later, the same circuit has become the scene of the opposite achievement.

Instead of reaching Q3, Stroll has completed his journey to 100 Q1 eliminations.

The contrast neatly summarizes the unusual trajectory of his F1 career: moments of genuine speed have existed alongside long periods in which qualifying has been a major weakness.

His Aston Martin future has also remained a regular subject of discussion, particularly as the team evaluates its performance under the new technical regulations. For now, however, Stroll remains Fernando Alonso’s team-mate, with Formula 1 confirming the Canadian’s continued presence alongside the Spaniard for the 2026 campaign.

A record that may stand for a long time

Whether the statistic is viewed as an indictment of Stroll’s qualifying performances or as a reflection of the machinery he has driven, the number itself is extraordinary.

One hundred Q1 eliminations means Stroll has been eliminated from the opening qualifying segment more than once every two qualifying weekends on average across his career.

Yet the same career contains a pole position, three podiums and a fourth-place qualifying performance at Monza.

That makes the record considerably more complicated than a simple measure of speed.

For Stroll, however, the historical record is now official in the statistical sense used to track the milestone: 100 Q1 eliminations, more than any other driver in Formula 1’s knockout qualifying era.

And after breaking Magnussen’s record in 2025, Stroll has now reached a number that once seemed almost impossible.

The century is complete.

FAQ

How many times has Lance Stroll been eliminated in Q1?

Stroll has now reached 100 Q1 eliminations under the statistical definition used for the modern knockout qualifying record. His 100th came at the 2026 Italian Grand Prix at Monza.

Who previously held the record for the most Q1 eliminations?

Kevin Magnussen previously held the record with 74 Q1 eliminations. Stroll surpassed that mark at the 2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.

Has Lance Stroll ever taken pole position?

Yes. Stroll took his only F1 pole position at the 2020 Turkish Grand Prix with Racing Point. Remarkably, he recorded zero Q1 eliminations during that season.