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A classic tale billionaire buys an F1 team. That’s it that’s the tale but that's not Lawrence Stroll’s whole story. Formula One is no stranger to the dark and sketchy and apparently neither is Lawrence Stroll. The recently released Epstein list contained hundreds of documents which exposed the names of co-conspirators, island visitors, and close contacts. Among them was none other than Aston Martin owner Lawerence Stroll, recently Aston Martin has championed themselves as innovators in pushing women into motorsport quite hypocritical coming from a team who’s owner was a contact for a known sex trafficker. The future of Lawrence Stroll and the Aston Martin team is likely unphased by this but it doesn’t have to end with problematic people on top.
The Epstein list contained a lot of names that weren’t necessarily new as many came from the earlier released black book which contained names of Epstien’s close contacts. Stroll appears in both, his name can be found on page 79 of the black book. Epstein recorded 17 phone numbers and 2 addresses under this name. The main address for this entry is in New York, US. Stroll’s Quebec address is listed below as well. The mere fact that his name is present on a contact list along number of phone numbers and addresses housed in the documents should be a huge red flag.
While Lawrence Stroll wasn’t named in the other court documents associated with the Epstien case, being a contact in the little black book, while not enough for in court evidence, wasn’t something to just stumble on. After all, running an international sex trafficking ring isn’t something everyone is included as a contact for. The black book was an essential primary source for investigation as it highlighted in part the scale of Epsitiens crimes requiring the list to imply some closeness to said crimes. Not having charges brought against someone isn’t enough to ignore the fact that they were clearly involved or at least to some extent aware of a web of literal sex trafficking.
Aston Martin made headlines this season for having the first female test driver in years. While this is a major step for women in motorsport the gesture is rather disingenuous coming from a team whose director is now a known contact of Jeffery Epsiten. Aston Martin has gained a direct monetary benefit from having the first female test driver in years yet fails to make a statement or even ask questions about their owners activities. To make Formula One a more inclusive space there first needs to be a sense of safety and security. These types of incidents are what the board of directors is for there is a way to hold the ultra wealthy accountable especially when their ownership stake is in a public company through investment.
Lawrence Stroll bought his way into the Aston Martin F1 team in 2020 when he invested a whopping $235.6 million investment and rather quickly got to work shaping the team into a potentially major threat, and to some extent his wallet and his work paid off this season. The 2023 season was a solid one for Aston Martin with a killer start and a set of failed upgrades which at the very least gave them something to work on. While this performance was a huge benefit to the team it didn’t come from Stroll. There’s hundreds of people working on an F1 team with varying roles. Even if the sole point of difference was Lawrence Stroll, mediocre success should never take away from holding people accountable for their associations.
In a world so dominated by problematic people it seems stories often get lost, in many ways it’s our duty to make sure these stories don’t get lost. One name out of over a thousand may not seem consequential but a failure to hold people accountable inspires the already ultra privileged to continue their actions. This isn’t a call to “cancel” anyone but instead a call for answers about a man who has very recently profited heavily off of the discrimination against women in motorsport who also is associated with someone who routinely sex trafficked and abused women and children.
Being in the black book isn’t an automatic sign of guilt but it’s far from a sign of great consciousness. The public has power and people have the right to know who’s behind their favorite teams, ethical consumption cannot happen without some level of transparency. Don’t be afraid to ask questions or demand answers from those in power.
