Aston Martin say Plan-A is to have Stroll back in the car for Canada

Stroll was withdrawn from Sunday’s race at Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya shortly after Qualifying, with the team revealing he would undergo a medical procedure related to discomfort in his hand and wrist. The issue is understood to stem from the cycling accident that sidelined Stroll during pre-season testing in 2023.

Aston Martin’s Chief Trackside Officer, Mike Krack elaborated on the situation after the race in Barcelona, saying the pain had quietly built up over recent weeks: “As it has been known already, the whole thing started in 2023. If you guys remember, there were injuries, and over the last weeks there was the mention of pain.

“You do not ask the driver every five minutes, ‘Do you have pain or not?’ You have a chat here with the physio, or here a chat, and you understand that there are some small issues.

“We have seen it with Lance in 2023, when he fought his way back, they want to drive, they do not want to be out. Very often I think they drive with probably more pain than they would even admit, to be able to drive, because this is what they love to do," Krack said.

Krack confirmed the pain had become more pronounced during the Barcelona weekend: “Over the last weeks, there was a mention here and there, but you are never aware how much it is, and over the weekend, I think it was just getting too much.

“I think at the end of the day, on Saturday after Qualifying, Lance and his team decided it was better to go and check, go and check again, and the recommendation was better not to race.”

When asked about a return date and the procedure itself, Krack was cautious: “You are not speaking to a doctor here, that is what makes it a little bit difficult to predict anything, or to say anything. I am not involved in that.

“We will have to see what the next days are bringing. I understand that there will be more tests, more checks going on over the next days, and we will know more in the coming days.”

Despite the uncertainty, Aston Martin still hope to have Stroll back for the upcoming races including his home race in Canada in two weeks: “It is quite simple, the ‘Plan A’ is to have Lance in the car – that is the ‘Plan A’, and that is what we are working to.

“If the ‘Plan A’ does not work, then we need to pull ‘Plan B’. Obviously we always knew that Le Mans was going to happen, so we also had plans in place that if we need a driver that is doing Le Mans, we will bring him, but at the moment this is not the only question.”

“We wait to see what the next days are bringing, and then we take a decision," Krack concluded. Montreal is up next, Stroll's home race, where last year he finished P7.