Lance suffers brake issues in inaugural race at Madring

Aston Martin Aramco Formula One™ Team driver Lance Stroll did not finish the Spanish Grand Prix which took place at the brand new Madring in Madrid.

Getting to grips

Free Practice was an opportunity for Lance to learn as much as possible about the new circuit.

During Friday’s Free Practice sessions, he tested the Medium and Soft tyres. After running a total of 26 laps in FP1, a Red Flag in FP2 resulted in less time to learn information.

The interruptions continued in FP3. Lance began on Soft tyres, but 20 minutes into the final Free Practice, an incident for Lewis Hamilton resulted in a lengthy delay. The session resumed with just 15 minutes remaining, and Lance was straight back out on track to continue working on the Soft tyre.

WATCH: 2026 SPANISH GRAND PRIX FREE PRACTICE ONE HIGHLIGHTS

Madrid misfortune

A water pressure issue ahead of Qualifying meant Lance wasn’t able to classify.

For the 57-lap race, Lance started from the back of the grid after taking a new power unit, with high temperatures affecting Madring conditions.

He climbed a position during the opening laps and then began battling teammate Fernando Alonso for P19.

Unfortunately, Lance began to experience brake issues, resulting in the pedal getting long. This led to him locking up on Lap 14 and he then had to retire the car.

The team will be bringing further weight saving measures to the next race in Azerbaijan on 24-26 September.

WATCH: 2026 SPANISH GRAND PRIX RACE HIGHLIGHTS

Lance Stroll, Aston Martin Aramco Formula One™ Team, said:

"I picked up quite a bit of damage in the opening laps. We tried to keep going, but then I started having some brake issues and the pedal was getting very long, so I locked up. I tried to spin the car around in the run-off, but I didn't have enough power, so unfortunately that was the end of the race. It's been a difficult weekend in Madrid."