Lance Stroll admits that he’s still not feeling 100 per cent after being involved in a pre-season biking crash earlier this year.
The Canadian driver sustained a fractured wrist, as well as a broken toe, in an incident in Spain that ruled him out of pre-season testing.
His participation in the opening round of the 2023 season was placed in major doubt, with reserve driver and reigning Formula 2 champion Felipe Drugovich on standby to replace him in Bahrain.
However, Stroll took part in the weekend and drove to a sixth place finish in what was a strong outing for Aston Martin.
“[It was] pretty painful on the Monday after [Bahrain], but it was a good weekend for the team – so worth the pain,” Stroll said.
Stroll is back in the paddock for the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix weekend, the second round of the campaign.
Having been able to drive throughout the entire event in Bahrain, there are no concerns about his availability for the Saudi weekend.
However, Stroll says that he still isn’t completely healed but is confident that the worst of the pain has disappeared.
“I’m getting better every day, feeling better every day,” he said. “I think the worst part is behind me.
“I’m still not 100 per cent, it takes a bit of time for these things to heal.
But I’m definitely feeling better than 10 days ago, or whenever we were in Bahrain.”
Aston Martin is currently the talking point of the paddock following the tremendous pace it displayed in Bahrain.
While Stroll drove to sixth place through injury, team-mate Fernando Alonso captured a podium finish for the Silverstone-based squad on his debut for the squad.
However, the team is remaining content over where it will place in the pecking order this weekend given the different track characteristics in Jeddah compared to Bahrain.
Keyword: Stroll wrist ‘still not 100%’ ahead of Jeddah F1 weekend