Petulant F1 billionaire Lance Stroll injured in secret garage tirade

The real reason behind Aston Martin driver Lance Stroll’s disappearance at the Spanish Grand Prix has emerged after months of rumours.

Lance Stroll was reportedly injured in a team garage tirade — forcing him to miss Sunday night’s Spanish Grand Prix.

The Canadian, whose father is billionaire Lawrence Stroll, missed the race, despite competing in qualifying at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya.

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Just a few hours after Aussie Oscar Piastri took pole position, Aston Martin announced Stroll would not compete in Sunday’s race. Stroll has finished the day in P14 after failing to progress to the third qualifying session.

The team released a statement to announce medical staff had advised he needed to undergo an operation as a result of ongoing pain in his hand and wrist.

However, the BBC on Sunday reported the 26-year-old launched into a tirade inside the team’s garage after he was eliminated in Q2.

Leading F1 reporter Andrew Benson wrote Stroll’s tirade turned physical with suggestions from anonymous sources Stroll had injured himself during the incident.

The BBC reports Stroll damaged equipment in the garage and swore at members of the team.

A team spokesperson has denied Stroll’s tirade turned physical and also denied he had sworn at staff members.

However, the team has confirmed “Lance was upset” following the session.

Stroll had finished Saturday’s qualifying session more than 0.5 seconds behind teammate Fernando Alonso.

Lance Stroll of Canada. Photo: Dan Istitene / Getty Images.

The team said in a statement: “Over the course of the past six weeks Lance has been experiencing pain in his hand and wrist, which his medical consultant believes is in relation to the procedure he underwent in 2023.

“As a result his medical team have confirmed that he will not race tomorrow and he will undergo a procedure to rectify these issues before focusing on his recovery.”

The team has not confirmed if Stroll will compete at his home race, the Canadian Grand Prix, beginning June 13.

Because Stroll pulled out after qualifying, the team was unable to replace him, leaving Alonso as the only Aston Martin on the starting grid.

Stroll has now been with the team for seven seasons with his father Lawrence remaining the team’s major shareholder.

He has three career podium finishes, but his last one came back in 2020.

Lance Stroll missed the Spanish Grand Prix with injury. (Photo by LLUIS GENE / AFP)

His contract with the team reportedly extends through to the end of the 2026 season.

However, all bets could be off if his father is tempted to sell his share in the team.

Bonkers rumours erupted in April with suggestions Stroll Snr. was preparing to walk away from the team.

The team is rumoured to be the target of Saudi Arabian crown prince Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud, through his close ally Yasir Al-Rumayyan, who manages the Gulf nation’s $940 billion Public Investment Fund (PIF).

If the sale does eventuate, it has been reported the team would attempt to recruit Max Verstappen on a ridiculous $470 million ($USD300m) contract offer.

That would leave Lance as the obvious weak link likely to be cut by the team, which has shown support for veteran legend Fernando Alonso.

Stroll Snr — who has a net worth recently valued at $3.7 billion — paid $80 million to Williams to first get his son behind the wheel of Formula 1 car and then moved to Aston Martin on the back of his father buying a majority share of the Racing Point team.

He is under more pressure than ever to keep his seat.

Originally published as Petulant F1 billionaire Lance Stroll injured in secret garage tirade