In the second half of August, Lawrence Stroll sold another minority stake in the company controlling the Aston Martin Formula 1 team. The Canadian billionaire retains full control over the team, and selling stakes allows him to raise funds for its operation.
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I have often mentioned here on the blog and on social media that Lawrence Stroll is a very clever businessman, at least in F1, because the business related to the car manufacturer Aston Martin is going moderately and it is unclear how it will end. Stroll bought the Force India team for very little money, and now it is worth many times more. The costs of maintaining the team, building a new factory, etc., have been very high over the past years, but Stroll gradually sells shares to provide money for its upkeep. I predict that in a few years he will sell the remaining shares and exit F1, making huge money – over a billion dollars. Unless he wants to leave the team to his family (if his son doesn’t become world champion as a driver, maybe as a team owner?).
Directly before the 2026 Dutch GP, it was announced in a statement that Robert Wood Johnson purchased a minority stake in the Aston Martin Aramco Formula One Team. The number of shares sold and their value were not officially disclosed. I saw unofficial rumors that it concerns 10-15%. The only concrete fact we know is that Lawrence Stroll still holds the majority stake and controls the team. The new shareholder will not be involved in the day-to-day operations of the team but will join the board. Robert Wood Johnson is expected to help the team attract sponsors in the USA through his contacts.
Robert Wood Johnson IV is an American billionaire (his ancestor Robert Wood Johnson I founded the Johnson & Johnson corporation) who is active in sports and politics. He owns the New York Mets team in the American MLB league. He supports the Republican Party in the USA and Donald Trump; thanks to him, he was the US ambassador to the United Kingdom.
Ownership and financial situation of the Aston Martin F1 team
Lawrence Stroll, along with a group of investors associated with him, bought the near-bankrupt Force India team in August 2018 for £90 million (about $117 million). They completed the 2018 season under the changed name “Racing Point Force India,” and from 2019 fully changed the name to Racing Point. Stroll never hid that this was a temporary name; he wanted his F1 team to have a strong brand connected to the history of the sport or motoring. He achieved this after taking control of the car manufacturer Aston Martin, changing the F1 team’s name to Aston Martin from 2021.
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It is always said that this team belongs to Lawrence Stroll, but that is not entirely true. Stroll is a shareholder in many companies, including those registered in tax havens. An ordinary blogger has no chance of finding out who the shareholders are and what percentage they hold. The private consortium Yew Tree, registered in one of the tax havens, is said to have decisive control over F1 activities. Initially, there were several people in this consortium – as reported in the media. It is unknown how many there are now. They are silent partners who put in their money, but Stroll manages everything. The only confirmed name is Silas Chou from Hong Kong, who, alongside Stroll, is one of the two directors in the companies controlling the F1 team. The consortium controlled by Stroll had 100% of the shares in the F1 team, but that later changed.
At the end of 2023, a minority stake was sold to the investment fund Arctos Partners. At the end of 2023, a small stake (4.6% of shares) was bought by the car manufacturer Aston Martin (information about the size of the shares appeared only in 2025). In 2025, they sold these shares for $146 million to an unknown investor. This means that the entire F1 team was valued at $3.173 billion – details. In 2025, Adrian Newey joined the team and also became a small shareholder (he received shares, but it is unknown how many). Now another minority stake has been bought by Robert Wood Johnson. Previously, there were credible suggestions (there were such records in documents) that the Aramco corporation had the option to buy shares in the team, but ultimately they did not take advantage of it, although they remain the title sponsor.
Summary
Aston Martin is a developing team that regularly incurs significant financial losses (in 2024 they were £40.3 million in the red). This is related to very large investments. The team is regularly growing, increasing employment, and has built a new factory. At the same time, they manage to attract many sponsors, and revenues are increasing. Owners have to cover the shortfalls, hence Stroll’s willingness to sell shares to have cash for this. A breakthrough should happen soon, and the team will start making profits. It is already valued, as I mentioned above, at over three billion dollars. After improving sporting and financial results, it will be worth much more. This applies currently to all F1 teams.
Articles and discussions of the financial results of various Formula 1 teams and issues related to their finances can be found under the tag Budget.
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