F1 star Lance Stroll tipped for stunning Aston Martin exit over performance issues

Lance Stroll and Sergio Perez smile and wave at the fans at the Chinese GP — Photo: © IMAGO

F1 News & Gossip

Lance Stroll tipped for stunning Aston Martin exit over performance issues

That would be the shock of the season!

Chris Deeley Editor

Experienced sports writer covering F1 and other motorsports since 2023

Wednesday 12 August 2026 20:55

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Lance Stroll has been tipped to leave Aston Martin in the not-too distant future – and not because he's become too slow for the team's purposes.

The Canadian driver has been a subject of some mockery from F1 fans for a number of years thanks to his employment status – consistently outperformed by his team-mates, but holding onto a seat because his father owns the team – but former star Juan Pablo Montoya has warned that he could actually decide to leave the team.

The former Williams and McLaren driver claimed that Stroll could become frustrated with the team's continued failure to put him in a competitive car, saying that anything less than a dramatic improvement in 2027 could see Adrian Newey and co searching for two new drivers, not one.

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Of course, this is all worth taking with a massive grain of salt – it's not clear that there's another team on the grid who would take a chance on the 27-year-old, meaning that an Aston Martin departure may see him out of the sport entirely – but the possibility is, apparently, worth considering.

Montoya: An Aston Martin without Stroll will happen

“Stroll will leave if the car doesn’t improve," Montoya said (via F1Maximaal). “If the car is not better next year, I think Aston Martin will have two free seats [in 2028].

“Everyone hopes that Adrian Newey and Honda will make sure that the car is good. Stroll has been driving in Formula 1 for many years now. If he really doesn’t see that the situation is going to get better, how much longer does he want to keep doing this?”

He added: “Sooner or later, an Aston Martin without Lance Stroll is going to happen. Maybe next year, maybe the year after that.”

However, this is all contingent on Aston Martin continuing to struggle – something that the last race before the summer break suggested might not be the case in the near future.

“I think that race in Hungary has breathed new life into them," the Colombian said. “It was kind of like they were suddenly like, ‘Hey, wait a minute, this is starting to get interesting again’.”

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F1 Aston Martin Lance Stroll Juan Pablo Montoya