Lance Stroll says an announcement of his contract extension at Aston Martin can be expected soon. The 25-year-old is perhaps the only constant in the driver market, given that his father, Lawrence, owns the team.
In recent months, Aston Martin has faced familiar questions about its driver lineup. With the Silverstone-based team claiming to have ambitions to fight at the front, Stroll’s presence seems somewhat of a contradiction.
After all, considering the strong driver combinations at Ferrari, Mercedes and McLaren, Lance Stroll is undoubtedly a weak link.
This time twelve months ago, the difference between the Canadian and the other front-runners was clear. His inability to match the efforts of teammate Fernando Alonso (or even come close) left its mark in the standings.
Lance Stroll wants to stay in F1
However, Stroll made some very firm statements earlier this year defending his record. He pointed towards his qualifying record against the Spaniard in 2024 as evidence of his abilities.
Of course, his qualifying victories against Alonso (Australia, Imola, Monaco) have almost exclusively been due to errors from the Spaniard. When the Double World Champion sets a clean lap, the deficit in speed is clear.
The drivers’ standings reflect this very clearly, with the 42-year-old responsible for 33 out of Aston’s 44 points this year.
Earlier in the year, there was speculation that Tsunoda could be a target for Aston Martin. Given Honda will power the British outfit in 2026, signing Tsunoda would be a logical upgrade that ticks all the boxes – both commercially and on track.
Of course, these reports were more hopeful than substantive. While the Japanese driver could have a place at the team after 2026, the door will likely be shut until then.
Lance Stroll’s new contract should be announced soon. Typically, Aston avoids announcing the Canadian’s contracts on social media for self-evident reasons. Perhaps this year, increased public scrutiny will change this.
For now, though, driver selection is not the primary concern at Aston. The first objective for Mike Krack and Dan Fallows is to turn around the AMR24’s lack of performance.
