Stroll to sit out F1 Singapore GP after huge qualifying crash

Stroll clipped the kerbs through the final corner at Marina Bay to unsettle the rear of his AMR23, which fired him into the outside wall before spinning back across the circuit.

This shunt, which ripped the tethered front-left wheel off, in the dying moments of Q1 led to a lengthy red flag stoppage in qualifying.

While Stroll suffered no serious injuries in the crash, the team reported he is still feeling sore and combined with the lengthy rebuild job of his destroyed F1 car, both the driver and the team have opted for the Canadian driver to sit out the Singapore race.

A statement from Aston Martin read: “Following Lance’s crash in qualifying for the Singapore Grand Prix, Lance and the Aston Martin Aramco Cognizant Formula 1 Team have jointly agreed that he will not participate in this evening’s race.

“The team face a huge job repairing the car today and Lance is still sore following such a high impact. Lance’s focus now shifts to fully recovering ahead of the Japanese Grand Prix.”

Aston Martin team boss Mike Krack confirmed Stroll will focus on being ready to return to action at next week’s Japanese GP.

“The whole team are relieved that Lance was able to step out of the car after yesterday’s accident – however, he is still feeling the after-effects of such a high-impact crash,” Krack said.

Lance Stroll, Aston Martin F1 Team

Photo by: Zak Mauger / Motorsport Images

“Our priority now is that he makes a full and speedy recovery. Together, we have decided that he will sit out this evening’s race and instead focus fully on returning to the cockpit for next weekend’s Japanese Grand Prix.”

Speaking after qualifying, Stroll felt multiple factors caused his crash, including losing time to the FIA weighing his car, traffic, dirty air and poor tyre preparation as he went for a lap to make it into Q2.

“We just weren’t really improving on that last lap with the out-lap being really bad. I had a lot of traffic, guys trying to make the line at the end,” Stroll explained.

“We got stopped at the weighbridge so that put us at the back of the queue and then I had to try and pass a bunch of cars to get my lap in before the end of the session.”

Aston Martin will contest the Singapore GP with a single car for Fernando Alonso, who starts from seventh on the grid.