Aston Martin Team Boss Says 'Plan A' Is To Have Injured Lance Stroll Race In Canada

Aston Martin Formula 1 driver Lance Stroll dropped out of last weekend's Spanish Grand Prix after qualifying due to pain in his arm and wrist that dates back to a 2023 cycling injury.

Because Stroll had withdrawn from the race after qualifying, Aston Martin was not allowed to put a replacement driver in his car, something that is a bit of a shame for them, given that Stroll's teammate Fernando Alonso scored his first points of the season, meaning they had a car capable of providing a double points finish.

However, despite some uncertainty about the timeframe for Stroll's recovery, Aston Martin team principal Mike Krack said that the team's "Plan A" for the Canadian Grand Prix — Stroll's home race — is to have him in the car.

"We will have to see what the next days are bringing," Krack said, per Formula1.com. "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.

"At the moment, it’s really difficult to tell you how it’s going to go, and what is going to happen in the next days, but we will find out."

According to Krack, the team's "Plan B" is to go with one of their two reserve drivers, either sports car driver Felipe Drugovich or ex-McLaren driver Stoffel Vandoorne.

Aston Martin team boss Mike Krack said the team's 'Plan A' is to have Lance Stroll in their car for the Canadian Grand Prix, despite his issues with a nagging injury. (Getty Images)

It gets interesting when you consider that Drugovich is currently slated to be in France for the 24 Hours of Le Mans the same weekend as the Canadian Grand Prix, where he will drive for Cadillac.

However, the Brazilian driver has already said that his priority is Formula 1 and will ditch Le Mans if the opportunity to sub in for Stoll arises.

"At the moment, I don't even know exactly how things will happen from now on," Drugovich told Band, per Motorsport. First of all, we have to wish Lance the best. For Le Mans, in that regard, my priority has always been Formula 1, so that's what must be maintained until then."

That's probably a good call since many drivers have gotten their starts in F1 as subs. Michael Schumacher is one notable one, but several drivers on the current grid, including Racing Bull's Liam Lawson and Alpine's Franco Colapinto, did as well.