MOTORSPORT F1 Stroll Sr wasn’t done yet and, along with a consortium of investors – including JCB chairman Anthony Bamford and some high-rollers in the fashion world – he had his sights set even higher: Aston Martin. The firm had been through a rough time, but the ship had steadied with Prodrive’s David Richards at the helm with some Middle Eastern financial clout. Share owners have, in recent times, included Ford and Mercedes and even Mercedes F1 boss Toto Wolff on a personal basis. But when Stroll Sr walked in the door to take over a 16.7% stake valued at £182 million at the start of 2020, he brought with him a cash injection of £318 million to help Aston Martin revamp its line-up. As well as now giving him road-car building clout, and it also made sense for him to use the famous motorsport name to brand his Formula 1 operation. It was a perfect match: a high-profile name back on the grand prix grid and an ambitious team to uphold its honour. Sportscar racing had been Aston Martin’s playground, with GT class success being the target. Between 2006 and 2020, using the DBR9 and the Vantage GTE, it claimed five divisional successes at Le Mans. Sportscar racing is embracing a new Hypercar era and Aston Martin’s Valkyrie model is a perfect fit. After some initial reluctance, it appears that the machine will be seen on the La Sarthe Tarmac in the future. But the option to move into Formula 1 was unmissable. Lawrence Stroll set out some very clear objectives when the cars, which were refreshed in as-near-to British Racing Green as it could manage, were first revealed. Gaining the signature of four-time World champion Sebastian Vettel to partner Lance in the cockpit was also one of his first statements of intent. The new team boss, brimming with pride, said: “A brand with the pedigree and history of Aston Martin needs to be competing at the highest level of motorsport. I think it’s the most exciting thing that’s happened in recent memory in Formula 1 and it’s incredibly exciting for all stakeholders in the sport, especially the fans. I can’t think of a better name for a Formula 1 team.” And he was also keen to point out that
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Aston Martin Driver | Issue one
the impetus of the grand prix team would help the road-car arm too. “Not only does Formula 1 help elevate the brand, it opens up the opportunity for technology crossover,” added Stroll Sr. “I’m incredibly excited to see what technology can filter down from the racing programme into the road cars. This will be particularly relevant for the mid-engine road cars that will be launched in the future. There will be a genuine collaboration to ensure that our road cars share the DNA of our success on the track as well. “Like every other business I own, my goal is to win and winning in Formula 1 means world championships and that is what we are striving for,” he said. “Of course, we all know that success in Formula 1 doesn’t come overnight. It takes years to have the right people, the right tools and the right processes in place. But we are building and investing in our team with the ambition to move up the grid year-after-year, and the ultimate ambition is to win a World championship. I have not made a significant investment in this company not to be fighting for a title, so we are going to do whatever it takes within the rules. It might take four, five or six years, but we are in a good place.” In truth, any place would have been a good place compared to Aston Martin’s first foray into grand prix racing in 1959. Aston Martin had a glorious record of success in sportscars. It had taken an outright win in the World Sportscar Championship in 1957 at the Nurburging with the DBR1 with Tony Brookes and Noel Cunningham-Reid at the wheel and it repeated the feat a year later in Germany with Stirling Moss and Jack Brabham driving. Long distance racing was the priority and it was all-out attack in 1959 as Roy Salvadori and Carroll Shelby took a victory at the Le Mans 24 Hours and the British firm secured the World Sportscar crown – then run only for manufacturers. Formula 1 was on Aston Martin’s radar and it created the straight-six powered DBR4. It had originally been penned in 1957 but the sportscar distractions meant it didn’t enter the Formula 1 World championship until 1959. Already outmoded, Shelby and Salvadori had taken a knife to a gunfight and didn’t secure a single point across their eight
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