This weekend’s Canadian Grand Prix is in many ways a bit of a home race for Aston Martin, given that the side are owned by Canadian billionaire, Lawrence Stroll.
Stroll has been the leading figure behind the team’s sensational rise towards the front this season, mostly due to the remarkable about of money he’s pumping into the Silverstone-based team.
It’s staggering to think that Aston Martin have gone from finishing seventh in the standings last season, to being amongst Mercedes and Ferrari on merit this campaign, and arguably doing a better job.
Red Bull are the only team to have claimed more podiums that Aston Martin this season, who’ve finished on the podium five times in 2023, all courtesy of two-time World Champion Fernando Alonso.
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With Forbes reporting that his net worth is £2.9 billion, Stroll is certainly a man with the financial requirements to mould Aston Martin into a championship winning team.
He bought out the Silverstone-based team for £90 million and paid-off £15 million worth of debt in 2018, whilst they were known as Force India.
In 2019, the Canadian rebranded the side as Racing Point, before they claimed their first victory in 2020.
Sergio Perez claimed Stroll’s first win as a team owner, whilst the Canadian’s son, Lance, crossed the line in third.
The team were rebranded once again in 2021 after just two seasons of running under the Racing Point name, after Stroll became Aston Martin’s executive chairman in 2020.
He gained the role following a £182 million investment, which saw Racing Point rebranded as Aston Martin.
2021 and 2022 were sluggish for the team; however, following some excellent recruiting and investment, a rise to the top is very much in motion.
Stroll has invested in a new factory and wind tunnel for the team, something which when completed, will see Aston Martin have the best facilities on the grid.
The team owner knows what he wants and is determined to get there, with the big dream being to make Aston Martin a team who can contest for the title and victories every season.
Aston Martin’s next goal is a first win under their name, something which would be incredibly fitting in Montreal this weekend.
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Stroll is “confident” that the AMR23 will suit the Circuit de Gilles-Villeneuve, perhaps putting the pressure on his son and Alonso to deliver.
“I’m extremely confident,” Stroll admitted, as reported by Crash.net.
“I believe the car will be very strong around the Montreal circuit, it suits our car well…so I’m really looking forward to going home and really looking forward to a great race.”