02/03/2023
NEWS STORY
Aston Martin has confirmed that Lance Stroll will participate in this weekend's Bahrain Grand Prix.
The Canadian was unable to take part in pre-season testing after incurring an injury whilst cycling, and as a result was replaced by Felipe Drugovich.
Aston Martin subsequently confirmed that if Stroll was unable to race he would be replaced by the Brazilian.
"It was frustrating not to be out in Bahrain for the test and I was disappointed to miss the three days of running," said Stroll in a brief statement this morning. "However, given the injury to my wrist, the team and I felt it was best to focus on recovery so that I would be ready for this weekend and the long season ahead.
"It was an unfortunate accident," he added, "I fell from my bike when my tyre caught a hole in the ground, but thankfully the damage was not significant and a successful minor surgery on my right wrist fixed the problem very quickly. Since then, I've been working hard with my team to ensure that I am fully fit to compete this weekend.
"I would like to thank the F1 community for their support and privacy, as well as the team who have helped my recovery. Now I'm ready to get my head down and concentrate on racing this weekend, something I'm really looking forward to."
Both Drugovich and Stoffel Vandoorne will remain on-site as the team's reserve drivers this weekend.
Check out our Thursday gallery from Manama here.