Stroll: “More pressure” with Aston Martin
Lawrence Stroll has finalized his investment in Aston Martin, which will indeed return to F1 in place of Racing Point.
Last January, it was announced that a consortium led by Lawrence Stroll had taken a 17% stake in the capital of Aston Martin. Since then, the Canadian billionaire has taken advantage of the Covid-19 crisis and its impact on the entire automotive industry to renegotiate his stake, which now stands at 25% of the capital thanks to the issuance of 76 million shares acquired by his consortium.
Now chairman of the board of directors of the manufacturer, Lawrence Stroll has reinforced the strategy outlined last January, with the name change from Racing Point to Aston Martin. This marketing strategy had the direct impact of halting the development of a hypercar for the WEC in order to focus on F1. Lance Stroll’s father confirmed this strategy: « Our investment strategy positions Formula 1 at the center of our global marketing strategy. It is therefore obvious to rename Racing Point. Aston Martin has had a lot of success in various motorsport categories throughout its history, but we now have the opportunity to have a factory team in Formula 1. The global exposure of Formula 1 is unparalleled, and we will capitalize on it to showcase the Aston Martin brand in our key markets. »
Aston Martin will therefore find itself in direct competition with rivals for its road vehicles, such as Ferrari or McLaren. That’s why the team cannot aim for the middle of the pack and must display a high level of performance, as a team accustomed to punching above its weight in recent seasons. After 30 years, they deserve the opportunity to represent a legendary brand. We continue to invest in the team to provide everyone with the necessary resources. We will see the fruit of these efforts as early as this year with Racing Point. With the Aston Martin name, there will be more pressure and expectations. We must be competitive from the start.
At the heart of the strategy to be competitive, Racing Point decided to purchase a large number of parts from Mercedes, the dominant force on the grid for many seasons. The winter tests have thus been very promising, but this has not escaped the frustration of other teams, who have contested such an approach despite it being entirely legal. Aston Martin will thus fully benefit from the regulatory stability now planned between 2020 and 2021 since the regulatory change has now been postponed to 2022.
With the participation of www.racingbusiness.fr
