Lawrence Stroll Wants the World Title: “I’m Relentless”
Silverstone, 4 November 2025 – Lawrence Stroll strides across the still-unfinished plaza of the Aston Martin Racing Technology Campus, olive trees imported from Tuscany swaying in the Northamptonshire wind. Dressed in team-issue khaki and white trainers, the 66-year-old billionaire pauses beside the £150 million wind tunnel and delivers the line that has become his mantra: “I’m relentless. I don’t give up until the mission is completed. The mission is being world champions.”
A 10-year journey, now at half-time
When Stroll bought the former Racing Point outfit in 2018 he publicly warned shareholders and fans to brace for “a decade-long rebuild.” Seven seasons later the scoreboard shows progress—four podiums in 2025, third in the constructors’ standings—but still no trophy. “One year is only one year out of a journey of many years,” he shrugs, echoing comments made in Aston’s new Unearth Your Greatness docu-series. “We are exactly where I thought we would be at this point: infrastructure done, people in place, now we need to execute.”
The £200 m campus that money can’t copy
Stroll’s most tangible weapon is the 36-hectare Silverstone site that opened phase-by-phase between 2023 and 2025. Highlights include a 60 %-scale rolling-road wind tunnel able to replicate 300 km/h yaw angles, a driver-in-loop simulator with 12 m/s² surge acceleration, and an on-site additive-manufacturing hall that prints 1 000 titanium parts per week. “There is no other factory like this in Formula 1,” Stroll boasts, repeating a claim verified by technical auditors from rival teams earlier this year. “If you want to copy it, start saving £200 million—and good luck finding the land next to a circuit.”
Recruitment blitz: Newey, Cowell, Cardile
Money builds bricks; egos attract brains. In the space of 12 months Stroll convinced former Mercedes power-trains chief Andy Cowell to become team CEO, lured ex-Ferrari aero guru Enrico Cardile as CTO, and—perhaps the biggest coup in F1 history—persuaded Adrian Newey to leave Red Bull for a reported £25-30 million annual package plus equity. “He’s a unicorn,” Stroll says of Newey. “He interprets loopholes better than anyone. Him and air have a relationship no one can figure out.” All three report directly to Stroll, who signs off every major design freeze.
Driver lineup: son Lance under the microscope
Stroll’s unconditional backing of son Lance, 27, remains the lightning-rod for critics. Yet data shows the Canadian has out-qualified team-mate Fernando Alonso 9-7 in 2025 and sits eighth in the drivers’ standings. “When the car is good, Lance is very quick,” Stroll senior insists. “When it’s not, we both feel the pain.” Alonso, 44, is contracted through 2026 and jokes that “Lawrence’s energy makes me feel younger.” Beyond that, paddock whispers link Max Verstappen to a 2027 seat should the new regulations tilt toward Aston’s favour.
2026 rules: the once-in-a-generation reset
Ground-effect cars, active aero, 50 % electrical power and fully sustainable fuels arrive next season. Stroll has inserted a clause in Newey’s contract that allocates 40 % of the design legend’s time to the 2026 project, codenamed AMR26. “The playing field is being wiped clean,” Stroll notes. “We have the people, the tools and the wind tunnel to exploit every comma in the rule book.” Early CFD snapshots leaked to Auto Motor und Sport suggest a “radical” rear-wing concept that stalls at high speed to cut drag, a Newey hallmark.
Financial firepower: $500 m per season and rising
Stroll admits the team and its sponsor roster—Aramco, Cognizant, Ma’aden and SentinelOne—are burning “north of half a billion dollars” a year. “I’m prepared to fund the gap myself until we win,” he says, referencing the estimated $80-100 million shortfall between commercial rights income and top-team budgets. Aston Martin shares, down 12 % year-to-date, are a secondary concern. “Share price doesn’t keep me up at night. Lap time does.”
The low-high roller-coaster
Stroll is candid about the emotional cost. “This sport gives you more lows than highs,” he sighs. “When we failed to get out of Q1 in Bahrain I didn’t sleep for 36 hours. But when Lance scored that podium in São Paulo last year I felt like I’d won the championship already.” Psychologists call it “affective forecasting”; Stroll calls it fuel. “Pain makes you sharper. I channel it into the next upgrade.”
Exit strategy? There isn’t one
Asked if he would ever sell, Stroll laughs. “I’ve never sold a passion asset in my life. I still have my first Ferrari 250 GTO. Why would I sell the thing I wake up thinking about?” He repeats the mantra that closes every staff meeting at Silverstone: “We are not here to participate. We are here to dominate.”
Bottom line
Half-way through a self-imposed 10-year odyssey, Lawrence Stroll has assembled the capital, the campus and the cerebral cortex of F1 design. What remains is the hardest part: converting potential into silverware. If the new regulations land in Aston’s favour, 2026 could be the year the billionaire’s relentless drive finally meets destiny.
Sources
Motorsport.com – Lawrence Stroll “relentless” mission, 3 Nov 2025
AstonMartinF1.com – Unearth Your Greatness episode 4, 1 Nov 2025
Destination F1 – “We’re here to win, full stop,” 3 Nov 2025
The Globe and Mail – Silverstone campus tour, 24 Oct 2025
FervoGear – Stroll seven-year rebuild timeline, 2 Nov 2025