Aston Martin: Championship rise a 'welcome reward' for progress

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Mike Krack says the two-place gain in F1's Constructors' standings achieved by Aston Martin in Singapore is a "welcome reward" for his team's steady progress in the back half of the 2022 season.

A clean race by Lance Stroll and Sebastian Vettel at Marina Bay, where the pair finished respectively P6 and P8, delivered to Aston its biggest points haul of the season, propelling Team Silverstone from 9th to 7th in the championship.

Given the monetary value associated with each point, it was a productive weekend for Krack's crews achieved amid perilous conditions as the race's rate of attrition demonstrated.

Read also: Aston Martin chargers deliver season best in Singapore

"Lance drove fast yet patiently to sixth place, scoring an excellent eight world championship points for us," he said.

"Sebastian, finishing eighth, added four more, pipped for seventh on the final lap by a hard-charging Verstappen.

"On a very slippery track surface, both our drivers handled an extremely tricky task superbly.

"As a result, we have climbed a couple of places in the constructors’ world championship, which is a welcome reward for the steady progress we have been making recently."

Aston Martin team principal Mike Krack and team manager Andy Stevenson

Aston Martin introduced a heavily updated car in Barcelona last spring. While the team was a consistent points scorer over the summer with at least one driver, it struggled to unlock the potential performance of its updated AMR22.

But recently, its pace has improved. After overhauling Haas and AlphaTauri in the Constructors' standings Singapore, Aston now sits 15 points behind Alfa Romeo, a team that appears to be moving in the opposite direction to Krack's outfit with five races to go.

"Formula 1 is a team effort, and in particular I want to pay tribute to our mechanics, who have worked long and hard in very humid conditions over the past few days, and executed our pit stops brilliantly this evening," Krack added.

"I also want to thank the team back home at Silverstone, who also did a fantastic job.

"From here we go to Suzuka, a very different kind of circuit, and we hope to maintain our forward momentum there."

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Phillip van Osten

Motor racing was a backdrop from the outset in Phillip van Osten's life. Born in Southern California, Phillip grew up with the sights and sounds of fast cars thanks to his father, Dick van Osten, an editor and writer for Auto Speed and Sport and Motor Trend. Phillip's passion for racing grew even more when his family moved to Europe and he became acquainted with the extraordinary world of Grand Prix racing. He was an early contributor to the monthly French F1i Magazine, often providing a historic or business perspective on Formula 1's affairs. In 2012, he co-authored along with fellow journalist Pierre Van Vliet the English-language adaptation of a limited edition book devoted to the great Belgian driver Jacky Ickx. He also authored "The American Legacy in Formula 1", a book which recounts the trials and tribulations of American drivers in Grand Prix racing. Phillip is also a commentator for Belgian broadcaster Be.TV for the US Indycar series.