By Jesus Coronel
It has been 61 years since Aston Martin was last involved in Formula 1 Racing.
Now they are back and ready to make their brand known again.
They will be taking over the Racing Point BWT team, which had one of its best seasons ever last year, finishing fourth in the Constructors’ Championship and having one of their drivers, Sergio Perez, finish fourth in the Drivers Standings.
Perez had one of the most shocking seasons any driver could have. His consistency in scoring points for Racing Point was a big part of it, but he also had a second place finish in the Turkish Grand Prix, as well as an unbelievable last to first finish in the Sakhir Grand Prix, during which he had to take an early pit stop over car damage in lap 1.
However, Racing Point did not retain Perez’s contract, even after last year’s impressive season. Perez is now driving for Red Bull Racing.
During the 2021 season, Aston Martin is expected to keep up the momentum they are carrying over from last year and contend for podiums, as well as finish high in the Constructors’ Championship.
A select number of invitations were sent to fans, reporters, sponsors and colleagues alike to watch the new era of Formula 1 begin live with the Aston Martin Cognizant F1 Team.
The drivers representing them are veteran Sebastian Vettel and rising star Lance Stroll. Both drivers had very different results last year.
Stroll had his breakout season last year with consistent points in over 63% of his races, including two third-place finishes in the Italian Grand Prix, as well as Sakhir. He got his first pole position in Turkey last year, showing some great promise for the future.
Even though Sebastian Vettel has won four World Championships in his career, his time with Scuderia Ferrari was not pretty over the last couple of years, being unable to win a championship with them. Last year was arguably one of the worst seasons in his career, only scoring 33 points for Ferrari. The team released him and now he is looking to rebound in a new look.
The AMR21 F1 car they have developed looks poised to compete with the top teams. It is powered by a Mercedes-AMG F1 M12 E Performance 1.6-liter V6 turbo-hybrid power unit and has a stunning green and pink look.
“The launch of the new AMR21 is also the celebration of a new beginning for Aston Martin,” said Executive Chairman Lawrence Stroll.
The new era for Aston Martin will certainly be very exciting for us to experience, but can they compete with teams such as McLaren, Ferrari, Alpine, Mercedes and Red Bull on a weekly basis? The team certainly believes they can compete.
Both drivers were interviewed during the live presentation and they have high hopes for the team as well. The CEO and team principal of the Aston Martin Cognizant F1 team, Otmar Szafnauer, has high hopes for both Stroll and Vettel performing very well in the upcoming 2021 season.
“Well we’ve got a great mixture of youth, talent, great car control and an ability to drive a racing car fast in Lance,” Szafnauer said. “And in Sebastian, we have a four time World Champion who knows how to win races, knows how to win championships. If we mix those two skills together I look forward to a great season.”
Vettel, as mentioned earlier, is hoping to rebound after a bad season with Ferrari as a member of Aston Martin. He is still hungry for success.
“Otherwise I wouldn’t be here,” Vettel said. “I think winning is maybe the ambitious straightaway, but it’s definitely everybody’s goal and it’s why we go racing.”
Stroll called being with Aston Martin a new chapter.
“There’s an incredibly talented group of people that have designed this racing car back at the factory and an incredibly talented group of people that are trackside every weekend,” Stroll said. “So I’m just so excited for the season.”
The first race of the 2021 season will begin with the Bahrain Grand Prix on Sunday, March 28 at 8 a.m.
