---
title: "Smedley: Stroll “engagement” will bridge gap to F1"
canonical: "https://readmotorsport.com/2017/01/15/smedley-stroll-engagement-bridge-gap-f1/"
type: "post"
language: "en-GB"
author: "Bethonie Waring"
section: "F1 News"
published: "2017-01-15T20:31:14Z"
modified: "2017-01-15T20:31:14Z"
---

# Smedley: Stroll “engagement” will bridge gap to F1

Rob Smedley believes Lance Stroll’s willingness to learn and work with the team will be an advantage for the Formula One rookie as he prepares for his first race.

The 18-year-old has been getting ready for his first F1 race since being announced late last year, but there isn’t a lot of time to prepare him for the jump from European F3 to F1. Though the teenager has a lot to learn, Smedley believes his engagement with the team will help him a lot.

“It helps when you have somebody who’s intelligent and empathetic with the task at hand,” Smedley said at Autosport this weekend. “Somebody of his young years who has that level of intelligence understands that it’s not going to be a cake walk… His intelligence, his engagement with us, helps a lot.”

The jump from Euro F3 is bigger than the jump most make when joining the F1 grid. Even with his intelligence and willingness to learn, it’s unlikely he will arrive at Australia a polished article. Smedley even believes driving the F1 car won’t be second nature to Stroll by the time he gets on track at Melbourne, but the team is working hard to get Stroll to a good standard his F1 debut in March.

![Mark Thompson/Getty Images Sport](https://media.readmotorsport.com/readmotorsport/2017/01/516751842.jpg)

“It’s been an ongoing project since it was announced that he would be one of our official drivers,” the former Ferrari engineer explained. “There’s a lot for him to learn. The gulf between Formula 1 and anything else in motor racing is just immense. It’s huge for engineers, it’s huge for mechanics, and it’s especially huge for the drivers.

“To bridge the gap in knowledge that you have when you come into F1 and to do it as quickly as possible in order that you can get to speed and get on with the job at hand is no mean feat. We’re working with Lance. We’re doing the best we can in the shortest possible time frame and hopefully, when we get to Australia, he will be reasonably well prepared.”