Lance Stroll has withdrawn from Sunday’s Formula 1 Spanish Grand Prix and will undergo a procedure with an undisclosed recovery time.
The Aston Martin driver had qualified 14th at Barcelona, where team-mate Fernando Alonso was 10th fastest.
However, Stroll - who has scored all 14 of the team's points so far this season - will not take part in Sunday’s race.
Aston Martin released a statement late on Saturday evening to reveal that Stroll has been “experiencing pain in his hand and wrist” over the past six weeks.
This is believed to be in relation to “the procedure he underwent in 2023”, when Stroll missed pre-season testing after what Aston Martin said was a cycling accident two weeks before the opening round.
Stroll “couldn’t move both hands”, broke his toe and “couldn’t walk” after that accident, which required surgery to address.
Two years on, Stroll will undergo a new procedure “to rectify these issues before focusing on his recovery”.
Aston Martin has not disclosed when Stroll’s procedure will take place or the expected timeframe of his recovery. F1’s next grand prix is Stroll’s home race in Canada in two weeks’ time.
If he is unable to take part, reserve drivers Felipe Drugovich or Stoffel Vandoorne would presumably deputise - Drugovich is on site in Spain but it is not possible to substitute this late as he has not taken part in any session so far this weekend.
Stroll had an incident reported to the stewards after qualifying in Spain. He did not follow the post-qualifying weighing procedure - instead, technical delegate Jo Bauer said Stroll spent five minutes in the team garage before going to the scales, and did not proceed through the pitlane.
Given the Aston Martin announcement later on Saturday evening, it seems possible this initial time spent with the team was a result of the pain he has been feeling, given he would have been fresh out of driving the car.
