Dutch Grand Prix session halted after Lance Stroll destroys Aston Martin in huge crash

Second practice at the Dutch Grand Prix was brought to a dramatic stop after Lance Stroll suffered a huge crash. The Canadian lost control of his Aston Martin at the banked turn three at Zandvoort and hit the barrier at high speed, destroying his car.

Practice was immediately halted by race control as the battered Aston Martin came to rest at the top of the banking. And there were immediate worries as smoke and steam poured from the wreckage of the car which had hit the barrier hard on the right side.

And there was further concern when replays showed that Stroll was still holding his steering wheel at the time of the impact. The Canadian has had trouble with his wrists over the past two years having broken them in a cycling accident ahead of the 2023 season and missed a race earlier this year to undergo corrective surgery having again experienced pain.

Fortunately, Stroll reported over the radio that he was "okay", after telling his race engineer that he had crashed. He was able to get out of the car and an Aston Martin spokesperson confirmed that he has returned to the garage to debrief with colleagues.

On the live Sky Sports coverage, pit lane reporter Bernie Collins said: "Lance closed the door with his left hand and is talking to his engineers. He seems pretty comfortable. He doesn't look in pain and is not holding any of his hands.

"From my non-medical expert opinion, he doesn't look like he has any concerns at this stage and is just talking through what went wrong." TV footage also showed Stroll appearing to be able to use his hands freely and without suffering any additional pain as a result of the crash.

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It was a disappointing end to the session for Stroll and Aston Martin who had, up to that point, shown strong pace at Zandvoort. Both performed well in the first practice session and team-mate Fernando Alonso was at the top of the timesheets in FP2 shortly after that hour resumed, once the wreckage of the other green car had been removed.

But the ones to beat in the Netherlands look likely to be McLaren who dominated proceedings on Friday. Dutch hero Max Verstappen warned that the circuit was unlikely to suit his car and he did indeed look sluggish on the first day of running at his home circuit.

He was at least able to keep his car between the white lines, though, which was something many of his rivals were having trouble with during FP2. After Stroll, Isack Hadjar was the next to retire from the session after suffering a problem on his car, before Alex Albon locked up and beached his Williams in the gravel, prompting more red flags.

And Lewis Hamilton was struggling with the windy conditions, suffering spins in both practice sessions as Ferrari looked to lack pace. Charles Leclerc was also unable to extract much from his red racing machine over the course of the two practice sessions held.