Lance Stroll

When Lance Stroll was a young boy driving a simple kart between cones in a car park, speed was not yet his profession. Above all, it was fun. A few years later, he was already among the most successful junior single-seater drivers of his generation, and shortly after his 18th birthday he lined up for his first Formula 1 race.

The Montreal-born Canadian grew up in an environment where motorsport had a natural place. His father Lawrence Stroll, a businessman and car enthusiast, drove on circuits himself and introduced his son to racing. Lance received his first kart at the age of six and was competing regularly from around eight. He later recalled getting up early in Canada as a child to watch Formula 1 races. His great racing hero was Michael Schumacher.

Even during his karting years, it was clear that Stroll's career would be more than a hobby. In 2009, he received a rookie of the year award from Québec's motorsport federation and gradually began competing internationally. At a young age, he joined the Ferrari Driver Academy, which prepared talented drivers for professional careers in single-seaters.

A rapid rise through the junior ranks

Stroll made an exceptionally successful transition from karting to single-seaters. In 2014, he entered the Italian Formula 4 championship and won the title in his very first season of single-seater racing.

The following year, he competed in the Toyota Racing Series in New Zealand. Once again, he won the championship, confirming that his Italian F4 success had been no fluke. He also moved into the considerably more demanding European Formula 3 championship, which at the time was one of the most important stepping stones for young drivers on the road to F1.

The 2016 season proved decisive. Driving for Prema Powerteam, Stroll dominated European Formula 3. He won 14 races, claimed the same number of pole positions and secured the title before the end of the season. He ultimately finished 185 points clear of the runner-up.

That year firmly opened the door to Formula 1. Stroll left Ferrari's junior programme and began working with Williams. His preparations included an extensive testing programme in older F1 cars, allowing him to gain experience before his competitive debut.

Rather than following the traditional route through GP2 or its successor, Formula 2, Stroll stepped straight up from European F3 to Formula 1.

An 18-year-old rookie at Williams

Williams announced Stroll as one of its race drivers for the 2017 season. When he lined up for his first start at the Australian Grand Prix, he was just 18 and among the youngest drivers in world championship history.

The start was not easy. His early races featured accidents, technical problems and the natural mistakes of a driver with only a few years of single-seater racing behind him. The turning point came at his home Canadian Grand Prix, where he scored his first Formula 1 points.

Two rounds later came a result that would become one of the defining moments of his career.

Stroll navigated the chaotic Azerbaijan Grand Prix in Baku without a major mistake and even challenged for second place. Valtteri Bottas narrowly passed him just before the finish line, but third place still gave Stroll his first podium. At 18 years and 239 days old, he became the youngest rookie ever to stand on an F1 podium.

His rookie season produced another exceptional moment. Wet qualifying at Monza tested the drivers' ability to respond to constantly changing conditions, and Stroll set the fourth-fastest time. Penalties for his rivals promoted him to second on the grid, giving him the first front-row start of his career.

His first Formula 1 season thus revealed both sides of his rapid rise: a lack of experience, but also an ability to seize opportunities in difficult and unpredictable conditions.

Williams' struggles and a move to Racing Point

In 2018, Williams could no longer match the performance of the previous season. The FW41 was one of the least competitive cars on the grid, and opportunities to score points were rare.

After two years at Williams, Stroll therefore changed teams. From the 2019 season, he drove for Racing Point, which had emerged from the former Force India team following its takeover by a consortium led by Lawrence Stroll.

His first season in new surroundings brought a return to more regular points finishes. A more significant step forward came in 2020, however, when Racing Point had a car capable of fighting at the front of the midfield and, in favourable circumstances, for podiums.

In terms of results, this was the strongest period of Stroll's Formula 1 career.

2020: two podiums and a maiden pole position

At the Italian Grand Prix at Monza, Stroll capitalised on a dramatic race and fought among the frontrunners after the restart. He crossed the line in third place to claim his second career podium.

An even more significant moment came at November's Turkish Grand Prix.

The new asphalt at Istanbul Park offered very little grip, and rain during qualifying made conditions even more difficult. Stroll handled them better than anyone to claim his first Formula 1 pole position.

In the race itself, he made a good start and led for most of the opening half. However, following problems with his front wing, he gradually lost pace and eventually finished ninth.

He ended the season with another podium. At the Sakhir Grand Prix, he finished third behind his race-winning team-mate Sergio Pérez and Esteban Ocon. By the end of the 2020 season, he therefore had three podiums and one pole position to his name.

A new era under the Aston Martin name

From 2021, the team took on a new identity. Racing Point became Aston Martin, bringing the British car manufacturer back to Formula 1 under its own name after more than 60 years.

Stroll remained with the team and was joined by four-time world champion Sebastian Vettel. Over the following seasons, Aston Martin fluctuated between the midfield and the fight for stronger results. Stroll scored points regularly, although he did not add to his podium finishes from 2020.

The 2023 season brought an unexpected complication before it had even begun. Stroll injured his hands and wrists in a cycling accident and had to miss pre-season testing. Nevertheless, he recovered sufficiently to contest the season-opening Bahrain Grand Prix. Despite not having tested the new car beforehand, he finished the race in sixth place.

Aston Martin had one of the most competitive cars on the grid in the first half of that season. Stroll, however, could not match the results of his new team-mate Fernando Alonso, who regularly fought for podium finishes. The Canadian nevertheless ended the year in the top 10 of the drivers' standings.

In the following seasons, he remained an established part of the Aston Martin project and continued alongside Alonso as the team pursued further technical development.

A driver whose story is intertwined with his family

Virtually from the outset, Lance Stroll's career has been accompanied by discussion of his family's substantial financial backing. Lawrence Stroll played a crucial role in building his son's career and later became the leading figure in the ownership group of the team for which Lance races.

That circumstance is an inseparable part of his story, but it does not change the results he achieved before entering Formula 1. Stroll won titles in Italian F4, the Toyota Racing Series and European Formula 3, claiming the last of those in dominant fashion against a generation of drivers, several of whom later reached the highest levels of motorsport.

In Formula 1, he has seized several opportunities where the ability to handle difficult conditions proved decisive. His Baku podium, wet qualifying performance at Monza and pole position on a rain-soaked Istanbul Park remain among the standout results of his career.

Life away from the circuits

Outside Formula 1, Stroll has maintained a close connection with sport. Growing up in Canada, he took part in mountain biking, skiing and ice hockey. His other activities include tennis, golf and surfing.

He has a particular passion for skiing. Aston Martin describes him as a backcountry skiing enthusiast. He is also interested in motorcycles and riding on circuits on two wheels.

He is also a fan of North American sport. He has followed the NFL for many years and has openly supported the New York Giants. He even attended the two Super Bowls won by the Giants in 2008 and 2012.

These interests fit the picture of a driver who spends most of his free time being active and gravitates towards sports involving speed, movement and the outdoors.

A career built on rapid progress

Stroll's journey through professional motorsport was unusually swift. In around 10 years, he went from his first competitive kart races to the Formula 1 grid. Before making his debut at the highest level, he spent just three full seasons in single-seaters, ending two of them as champion.

Since entering F1 in 2017, he has raced for Williams, Racing Point and Aston Martin, although the latter two names represent different stages in the evolution of the same Silverstone-based team. During his career, he has claimed three podium finishes and a pole position, becoming one of the longest-serving Canadian drivers in world championship history.

His motorsport career therefore brings together two distinct strands: an exceptionally rapid and successful rise through the junior ranks, and a long spell in Formula 1, where his most memorable results have often come in races or qualifying sessions held in unusual and demanding conditions.