Mystery Surrounds Lance Stroll's Status for F1 Opener in Bahrain

Aston Martin driver Lance Stroll remains a doubt for Formula 1’s season-opening Grand Prix in Bahrain next weekend amid uncertainty over the extent of an injury.

Stroll was cycling in Spain at the weekend while training but was involved in what his Aston Martin team is calling a minor accident.

However the injury was sufficient for Stroll to be ruled out of the entirety of preseason testing. Aston Martin officials have not confirmed the extent of Stroll’s injuries and have remained quiet on the situation during testing this week in Bahrain.

It is believed that Stroll has sustained injuries to his hand and wrist with some reports indicating that he has suffered a fracture to his wrist. Aston Martin used reserve driver Felipe Drugovich for opening half of Thursday’s first test in Bahrain. Drugovich, 22, was signed by Aston Martin as its reserve driver after clinching the Formula 2 championship in 2022.

Regular racer Fernando Alonso, who joined from Alpine on a multi-year deal, drove the AMR23 for the remainder of Thursday’s action and for the entirety of Friday’s test day.

Aston Martin team principal Mike Krack, speaking on Thursday, was coy about the situation and described Stroll’s absence as “precautionary” and that “we decided to wait a little bit and be ready (for) next week.”

Drugovich will return to Aston Martin’s AMR23 for the first half of Saturday’s final test day, indicating that the team is keen for him to accrue experience in the event that he has to replace Stroll next weekend. He would be one option for Aston Martin if Stroll cannot recover from his injuries—and return to the required fitness levels—by next weekend.

Aston Martin also has Stoffel Vandoorne on its roster as another reserve driver; he contested 41 Grands Prix for McLaren, alongside Alonso, for 2017 and 2018.

Vandoorne nonetheless races full-time in Formula E—and is the all-electric series’ reigning champion—and this week’s sole preseason Formula 1 test clashes with Formula E’s race in Cape Town.

The opening two days of testing have so far passed without much drama with teams undertaking substantial running at the Bahrain International Circuit.