Aston Martin officially confirms return to F1 in 2021

Legendary car maker Aston Martin has officially confirmed its return to F1 through the voice of its new executive chairman Lawrence Stroll.

The Canadian billionaire and owner of Racing Point F1 put together a consortium of investors that fled to the rescue of the iconic sportscar manufacturer earlier this year.

On Monday, Aston's shareholders approved a £536M fundraising, half of which was underpinned by Stroll's Yew Tree Consortium.

The funding will allow Aston Martin to launch the production of its long-awaited DBX SUV car and initiate the creation of its own works F1 team in association with Racing Point.

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"A brand with the pedigree and history of Aston Martin needs to be competing at the highest level of motorsport," said Stroll.

"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.

"Our investment strategy places Formula 1 as a central pillar of the global marketing strategy, and it makes perfect sense to rebrand Racing Point for this purpose.

"Aston Martin has been competing very successfully in various classes of motorsport throughout its history, but we now have an opportunity to create a works team in Formula 1.

"The global spotlight of Formula 1 is second to none and we will leverage this reach to showcase the Aston Martin brand in our key markets."

Stroll underlined how Aston will benefit from leveraging Racing point's F1 technology.

"Not only does Formula 1 help elevate the brand, it opens up the opportunity for technology cross-over," explained the Canadian businessman.

"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."

Stroll has invested heavily in Racing Point to outfit the team with the proper infrastructure and resources to allow it to become a front-running outfit in F1. And investments are set to continue.

"We are continuing to invest in the team to give everybody the resources required and we will see the benefit of those efforts this year as Racing Point," added the 60-year-old.
"With the Aston name comes more pressure and expectation. We will need to be competitive from the outset.

"But I have no doubt the team at Silverstone will rise to the challenge and do the Aston Martin name proud."

On the subject of the ongoing coronavirus crisis which has put F1 at standstill, Stroll sees the current predicament as a pause in Racing Point's journey.

"I don’t think there is any area of life or business that hasn’t been touched by this devastating pandemic and the racing community is certainly adapting as best it can," he said.

"Of course, as racers, we are all very frustrated not to be competing, but we all understand the bigger picture in this global fight and so we stay at home.

"The team is also supporting Project Pitlane to help accelerate the production of ventilators. In the meantime, we can rely on video conferences to keep our plans for 2020 and 2021 moving forward.

"I am committed to Formula 1 with a long-term vision and this is just a temporary pause in the journey."

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