On Saturday night, ahead of Sunday’s Spanish Grand Prix, Aston Martin announced that Lance Stroll, who had qualified 14th after making the cut and reaching Q2, will not take part in the race. This means that the Silverstone team will only compete in Barcelona with Fernando Alonso’s car, which qualified 10th.
Lance Stroll is once again experiencing discomfort from his wrist injury and will not race in the Spanish Grand Prix with Aston Martin
“Over the course of the last six weeks, Lance has been experiencing pain in his hand and wrist, which his medical consultant believes is related to the procedure he underwent in 2023. As a result, his medical team has confirmed that he will not race tomorrow and will undergo a procedure to rectify these issues before focusing on his recovery,” the Silverstone team said.
Therefore, after qualifying in 14th position on Saturday, Lance Stroll will not take his place on the grid after experiencing recurring pain in his hand and wrist. And, according to reports from Barcelona, he may also miss the next race, his home race in Montreal, Canada.
Stroll fractured his wrist in a cycling accident in February 2023
As stated in the press release, the Aston Martin team says that the driver’s discomfort was related to the injury he suffered at the start of the 2023 season, when he fractured his wrists in a cycling accident on the eve of the 2023 season, and Stroll will now undergo surgery to find a solution.
The Canadian suffered a fall while training on his bike. Stroll was mountain biking in Malaga when his front wheel hit a hole in the ground. The impact caused him to lose his balance and, in a reflex action, he put his hands out to break his fall. In the incident, the Aston Martin driver fractured his right wrist with displacement and his left wrist without displacement, as well as his right big toe.
He traveled to Barcelona that same day and 48 hours later underwent surgery on his right wrist at the Hospital Universitari Dexeus. There, he was operated on by the team of Dr. Xavier Mir, director of the Hand and Elbow Unit and a specialist in upper limb surgery with more than 25 years of experience, who inserted a screw to help consolidate the fracture.
Drugovich is a reserve driver, but he cannot replace him in Barcelona
He was unable to take part in the pre-season tests in Bahrain that year and Aston Martin replaced him with Felipe Drugovich. However, he made a speedy recovery in just three weeks, managing to get back behind the wheel in the first race, alongside Alonso, and finishing in a creditable sixth place.
But what was thought to be forgotten was not so, and Lance Stroll suffered discomfort in his wrists again in 2025, six weeks ago. Everything points to it being a poorly healed injury. This has led to the decision, with one race to go and after qualifying (now known to have been in less than ideal conditions), that ‘18’ and his team will not race this Sunday… leaving only one car on the track.
But what about Drugovich? The reality is that the Brazilian, who is currently a reserve driver, could have taken his place… if he had participated in any of this weekend’s sessions. In other words, the regulations state that for another driver to take the place of an injured driver, or one who is unable to do so, they must have participated in a session over the weekend, whether it be Free Practice 1, Free Practice 2, or Free Practice 3. This, of course, did not happen.
Who can take his place at Aston Martin
In other words, if Lance Stroll had decided not to take part in qualifying, Brazilian driver Felipe Drugovich could have replaced him in qualifying and also in the race, but as the decision was made after the fact, this will no longer be possible.
In any case, although Stroll intends to race in the next race in Canada, which would be his home Grand Prix from June 13 to 15, he may not recover in time or may continue to experience discomfort. In that case, it is possible that one of Aston Martin’s reserve drivers will take his place and accompany Fernando Alonso.
- Felipe Drugovich. As we said, the first on the Silverstone team’s list of drivers is Felipe Drugovich. The Paraná native is the reserve (and test and simulator driver) for these types of situations, and he has been doing so for the third consecutive season. In fact, the 2022 F2 champion has already gotten behind the wheel in different free practice sessions over the past three seasons. The only drawback is that, if the case arises, the Brazilian would have to give up his participation in the 24 Hours of Le Mans, which takes place on the same weekend as the Canadian Grand Prix. He is registered with the Cadillac team.
- Stoffel Vandoorne. Like Drugovich, Vandoorne is Aston Martin’s reserve, test and simulator driver, so he would also be in line to replace Stroll if required. However, for the Belgian to do so, Aston Martin would have to reach an agreement with Drugovich, who is the first reserve, so that the Brazilian can compete in the 24 Hours of Le Mans and the former McLaren driver can compete in his place.
- Jak Crawford. Last on the list, but also the possible solution. Although the American is not considered a reserve driver, he has been involved with Aston Martin since 2024 as part of its young talent and driver development program, which also saw him drive the F1 car in some private tests with the team. He has less experience than Drugovich, but he would be a valuable asset. He is 20 years old and currently competes in F2 with the DAMS team.