One area where Fernando Alonso has succeeded but Sebastian Vettel failed at Aston Martin

Fernando Alonso's start at Aston Martin has been one that nobody would have imagined when he signed for the team last season. In the first four races of the season, Alonso has three podiums and a P4 in Baku. Quite a few pundits and even fans have speculated how well Fernando Alonso's predecessor Sebastian Vettel would have fared at Aston Martin.

Now that's one question that's hard to answer. While Fernando Alonso has been doing a tremendous job, Vettel's last F1 season with Aston Martin wasn't bad either. Having said that, there's one area where Alonso has beaten Sebastian Vettel and that is in how he has developed a very close relationship with the 'boss' son' Lance Stroll.

Baku highlighted the strong Fernando Alonso-Lance Stroll dynamics

One of the more striking things that happened early in the race in Baku was Lance Stroll coming on the team radio and saying he wouldn't attack Alonso as the Spaniard was trying to save his tires early in the stint. The team relayed the message to Alonso that Stroll was effectively willing to play the supporting act.

Later in the race, it did appear that Fernando Alonso was looking out for his young teammate as he told the team to share his brake bias data with Stroll. Even after the race, when questioned about his teammate, Alonso admitted that he felt like a big brother to Stroll and tried to help Stroll in whatever way he could.

This kind of chemistry between the two Aston Martin drivers is a huge surprise, especially if we consider the fact that they have only been together for four races.

A look back at the 'Sebastian Vettel-Lance Stroll' relationship

Looking back at the relationship that Sebastian Vettel and Lance Stroll had, it's hard to call it anything but cordial. The two drivers got along well off the track and as is the case with almost every Sebastian Vettel teammate since Mark Webber.

There was, however, one stark difference and that was how the two drivers tangled on the track. Vettel was quite clearly the better driver at Aston Martin last season. But if there was any driver on the entire grid that he had to be wary of while racing, it was his teammate.

It did appear that Lance Stroll was especially ruthless against Vettel in their on-track battles. It also did appear that he wasn't scared of shoving Vettel off the track during battle (just like what happened in Brazil last season).

Why the stark difference in dynamics is a major prop to Fernando Alonso

When Alonso joined Aston Martin after a somewhat fractious relationship with Esteban Ocon, many wondered how he would fare against Stroll. At the time, questions were asked if Alonso moving from Ocon to Stroll as a teammate was an even worse option.

Stroll had shown a level of eagerness to beat his teammate when Vettel was there, which resulted in some questionable battles between the two on track. If Alonso ended up having the same with Stroll, the relationship was never going to succeed

What we have seen this season, however, is him somehow completely flipping the script at Aston Martin. While Stroll respected Vettel, he did not shy away from putting him in peril during races (e.g. Brazil last season amongst many others).

The relationship with Alonso is a lot different. Stroll not only respects him, but he also reveres him and in Baku, he showed a willingness to be the Spaniard's wingman.

While Vettel was never able to reach that level of understanding with Stroll, Alonso has done that within the first four races. In the long run, Alonso has talked about helping Stroll become team leader at Aston Martin. But in the short run, he has ensured an able wingman when his team finally has a car good enough to fight for the title.

Multiple pundits have questioned whether Sebastian Vettel could have achieved as a driver what Fernando Alonso did this season with that Aston Martin. The answer to that could very well be, 'Yes, he could have'. But once we sit down and question whether he'll have Lance Stroll as a willing and able wingman after four races into the season, the answer is, 'No, he won't.'

In a move that would yield longer-term success for him, this is one major area where Fernando Alonso has found success but Sebastian Vettel couldn't, having an able, helpful teammate that is willing to play the supporting role.