Billionaire owner Lawrence Stroll wants to “support and help” Aston Martin reach the top, says ex-boss

Aston Martin chief trackside officer Mike Krack has said that team owner and billionaire Lawrence Stroll supported the Silverstone-based outfit despite its recent struggles. The British team has failed to recapture its early-season momentum from 2023 and has regressed into the clutches of midfield ever since.

It failed to get any podiums from the 2024 season and could only manage 94 points in 24 races and six Sprints with Fernando Alonso scoring 70 points on his own. The team, formerly Racing Point, couldn't properly develop its cars in the 2023 and 2024 seasons as the upgrades did not yield the desired results.

However, speaking with Motorsport.com, Krack, who was the Aston Martin team principal in the last two years, was full of praise for Stroll's commitment to the project as he believed that the Canadian was willing to offer his help in the struggles, saying:

"Well, he has continued to be supportive, especially when you see the recruitment that he has made since. So, it really looks like [he’s saying], ‘They need more help, they need more expertise,’ and he goes and does it. I think that is characterizing him. You see that he wants to do well, he wants to support, he wants to help.

He is also impatient, which is understandable but the combination of the support, the impatience, but also the understanding of how difficult this is has led to him, I'm not saying giving the time, but understanding that sometimes it's just not like ‘turn key’ - you put everything in place and it has to work."

Stroll took over the Silverstone-based team in the middle of 2019 and has invested heavily ever since and had previously given a timeline of five years in 2021 to make it a championship contender.

---

Aston Martin's ex-team boss gives his take on the "high competition" in F1

Former Aston Martin team principal Mike Krack has said that the competition at the top of the sport was "high" and believed it was not a "bad team". As quoted by the above source, the German reiterated:

"Let's not forget, the competition is extremely high, the competition is tough. There is not a bad team on the grid and we will see in 2026 when we have a new team. I would be interested to see how that goes because the level, as I said, is incredibly high and you also want the spotlight all the time."

Aston Martin has hedged its bets on the new engine regulations in the 2026 season as it has tied with Honda as its engine partner ditching Mercedes. It has also signed aero wizard and former Red Bull CTO Adrian Newey as a managing partner, who will start his work in March this year.