Aston Martin driver Lance Stroll doesn’t come across as the sort of person who would enjoy being stood in front of thousands of fans at a Formula 1 livery launch event.
However, Stroll – alongside teammate Fernando Alonso – played his part in a James Bond-themed launch at The O2 on Tuesday evening.
Aston Martin then unveiled their 2025 livery and unsurprisingly it looked very similar to all of their previous Formula 1 cars.
Alonso declared that it was the best-looking car that evening, although F1 fans thought Racing Bulls nailed their livery as they displayed a brand-new look.
Aston Martin are hoping for a revival in 2025 after slipping down the pecking order last year.
They still finished fifth in the constructors’ championship for a second consecutive year, but the gap to the manufacturer above them grew significantly.
Stroll and Alonso won’t want to write off the upcoming season but know that 2026 is when they could take huge strides forward.
The team’s facilities will be completed including their new wind tunnel and Adrian Newey will be fully embedded within Aston Martin after leaving Red Bull.
Alonso has already sent a message to Newey and he will hope that the legendary designer can help him finally win a third world championship.
Aston Martin star Lance Stroll dismisses David Croft tennis rumours
Stroll is well known in the paddock for being an all-round sportsman and is regularly named as one of the best padel players on the grid.
The Canadian spent the winter snowboarding, but one of the rumours that has always followed Stroll is that he’s a brilliant tennis player, which apparently came from Sky Sports F1 commentator David Croft.
Journalist Christian Hewgill said to Stroll on The Fast and The Curious Podcast that he’s heard he’s a good tennis player and the Canadian replied: “Be careful, don’t believe everything you read.
“No, I’m really not that good at tennis! Someone came up with that, I don’t really know how that started brewing.
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“I mean, I always grew up playing a lot of sports, for sure. They were saying like I was going on the ATP World Tennis tour. Am I good enough to do that? No.”
When asked who was saying this about him, Stroll continued: “Someone came up with this, I think it was Crofty [David Croft], Crofty said it. Pulled that one out of somewhere, I don’t really know where.”
Lance Stroll’s Formula 1 future is constantly under discussion
Stroll has started 166 Grand Prix but only has three podium finishes to his name and a single pole position.
While he’s never raced for a top team, he scored less than half of the points of Alonso in 2024 and the year before, he failed to register a top-three finish while the Spaniard was on the podium on eight occasions.
Stroll is said to be considering his options away from F1 which is something that Newey reportedly wants.
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Newey has been a success at every team he’s worked with, but trying to deliver a race-winning car for Stroll might be a struggle.
He’s capable of moments of brilliance but also makes big mistakes, with Stroll’s error before the Sao Paulo Grand Prix in 2024 standing out.
If Stroll does decide to walk away from Formula 1, it sounds like a professional tennis career isn’t on the cards.
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