Mercedes reveals cause of Stroll engine failure in Canada

Mercedes has traced the blow-up of Lance Stroll's brand-new phase 2 engine in Canada to a spark plug failure, an issue the manufacture has since addressed.

Mercedes introduced its first engine upgrade of the season in Montreal, with the new unit supplied to its works cars as well as to Williams and Racing Point's drivers.

Stroll's engine failed in FP3, igniting concerns in the German camp that the Canadian driver's issue - the cause of which was unknown at the time - could spread to all of Mercedes' phase 2 units.

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The weekend unfolded without any further drama however, while investigative work by Mercedes' HPP engine department in Brixworth uncovered the reason for the unexpected breakdown.

"The origin was a spark plug failure that caused a cascade of other problems, resulting in the engine failure," a Mercedes spokesman told Motorsport.com.

"We will have countermeasures in place for this weekend."

Stroll completed his Canadian weekend with a phase 1 engine that powered the Canadian to a top-ten finish. The Racing Point charger should revert to a phase 2 unit for this week's French Grand Prix.

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