Lance Stroll explains heavy Dutch smash as Aston Martin tee up surprise McLaren attack

Lance Stroll is confident Aston Martin can force its way into the top two rows in qualifying for the Dutch Grand Prix despite giving his mechanics an overnight repair headache following a major smash in second practice.

FP2 at Zandvoort was just 11 minutes old when Stroll crashed into the barriers at the circuit's renowned left-hand banking at Turn 3, destroying the right-hand side of his car.

Team-mate Fernando Alonso went on to split McLaren duo Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri at the end of the session, finishing just 0.087s behind the Briton and two-thousandths ahead of the Australian, with the trio the only drivers to dip below 70 seconds.

Reflecting on his crash initially, and mercifully avoiding a trip to the medical centre and the possibility of any complications over his past broken wrist injuries, Stroll described what occurred as "just a little lock-up".

He added: "From there, I was just a passenger. Just one of those things."

Stroll was at least buoyed by the performance of the AMR25, following on from its performance at another similarly tight, twisty track last time out before the summer break in Budapest's Hungaroring.

At the end of FP1 in Zandvoort, the Canadian driver and Alonso finished third and fourth quickest respectively behind the McLaren pair, with Norris again the spearhead. 

"For sure, we looked competitive throughout the day, and with Fernando in FP2," said Stroll. "We're in a good spot, and we'll see what we can do tomorrow."

As for qualifying and whether he and Alonso could fight for the front two rows, he said: "I think so. For sure, it looks that way. We'll see."