Why Aston Martin’s arrival is more than just new green livery

When Aston Martin first boldly declared its Formula 1 comeback plans with a works team for 2021, the cynics were quick to suggest it would be little more than a rebadging exercise. After all, with the former Racing Point team continuing to use Mercedes customer engines and operate out of its Silverstone facilities, it was not hard to argue that it did not have the true manufacturer status of Mercedes, Renault and Ferrari.

But as time has gone on, and the momentum behind the Aston Martin F1 project has gathered, it has become increasingly clear that there is much more to the British sportscar manufacturer’s return to grand prix racing than just painting the old pink cars a spectacular shade of green.

There has been the luring of Sebastian Vettel, a rush of sponsors including new title backer Cognizant, and the partnership with Aston Martin’s road car division runs deep as it is certainly not just a silent partner to the project. For Aston Martin is clear that utilising the F1 team is an epic win for the company, as it bids to resurrect its road car business fortunes under the ownership of Lawrence Stroll.

But above all else for the team, the arrival of the Aston Martin effort brings with it an added pressure of expectation. Being a bit part player in F1 is no longer an option: there is a need to live up to the hype.

As team principal Otmar Szafnauer explains: “It means more than just carrying that badge in our chassis. We have to also have commensurate performance. And we've got to do the name justice, which we will do.

“You can't just say that you want to perform at a higher level. There's a lot of work that has to happen in the background.

Aston Martin AMR21 F1 car

“This includes better infrastructure, more like-minded people pulling in the same direction, and a greater group of racers than we had at the point where Lawrence Stroll took over Racing Point. We were at 405 employees then [in 2018], we are nearly in the mid-500s now, so we're hiring more people. And we're hiring the right people.

“Also, we've improved our manufacturing capability. We've also improved some of the tools that we have to extract the performance out of the car aerodynamics, with CFD vehicle science.

“All of that is done with the objective and the goal of performing on track such that we can do the name proud. So it's not just rebranding the F1 car as Aston Martin. We have to perform at a higher level, which we're aiming to do.”

"There is a synergy and a relationship therefore, with a great historical brand and a fantastic platform of racing, and the endeavours that are included in that. It's very, very similar to Ferrari in that respect" Marek Reichman

The benefit does not just run from the road car to the racing team though: it goes both ways. For having its own F1 team is a boon for the Aston Martin road car company as it gives it a huge way in to exploit the marketing opportunities of grand prix racing as it pushes on with expanding its range.

Furthermore, with Stroll overseeing both sides of the business, the structure is actually more akin to how Ferrari originally came about: with a figurehead owner who is in charge of both racing and road car operations.

Speaking last week to Aston Martin’s chief creative officer Marek Reichman, the sense of enthusiasm about what the F1 project brings was palpable. F1 has served not to act as a drain on resources, nor an unnecessary distraction for him. It has heaped publicity on the brand, and that can only serve to fast track the desire for more cars and hopefully more sales.

Lawrence Stroll, Owner, Racing Point

Photo by: Charles Coates / Motorsport Images

“We get the best of both worlds,” said Reichman. “We've got a fantastic marketing platform, without significant costs or capital from AML, because of the ownership structure of Aston Martin Cognizant F1.

“And it's about accelerating the programmes [for the next road cars]. This is one of the opportunities to do that, because more people will be looking at us and looking for the products that we promise.”

Reichman sees opportunity for joined up thinking between the Aston Martin F1 project and the road car company: which is something that is essential for any successful manufacturer project.

“There is the pride in place, you know," he continued. "Our factories are very close, within a 40 minute drive of each other. The facilities that the F1 team has, in terms of use of windtunnels, use of simulators, we can make use of.

“We have a leader that is owner of one and executive chairman of another, and so there is a direct link to the vision to the thinking. And so it does go way beyond title sponsorship. It's ingrained in the mentality and the thought process again.

“I've shared many a bottle of wine with Otmar talking about the future of the brand, what racing means and how important this is to the to the pride of the guys and girls that build our road cars and our F1 cars. And some of them know each other. They live in the same place. There is a synergy and a relationship therefore, with a great historical brand and a fantastic platform of racing, and the endeavours that are included in that.

Aston Martin AMR21 F1 car

“It's very, very similar to Ferrari in that respect because of the ownership structure that we now have. And it's very similar in terms of how we want to share information and how we want to pull together as one team.”

And if there is one example that proves just how much attention to detail Aston Martin is putting into making sure the F1 project is done to the right standard, then you need look no further than the livery – and the exact choice of green that was revealed earlier today.

While it was pretty clear from early on that the team would be competing in British racing green colours, finding the exact colour specification was not something that was going to be rushed into.

"We have spent 12 months developing a colour. We've gone through numerous iterations on the livery. And up to the 59th minute of the 11th hour, it was being detail changed, getting things exactly right" Marek Reichman

“I wish it was as easy as looking at Pantone colours and picking the right one,” explained Reichman. “You know, developing the paint colour itself is so complex, because we have to translate that onto our road cars as well.

“It's not just developing a colour for the livery that sits on the Formula 1 car, because people will say I want my road car in the same colour when they see it. So you have to go through a full development process, or repeatability, damage-ability, repairability, etc.

“And obviously, in thinking about the Formula 1 car, I've got to consider Otmar's needs for being as light as possible. You don’t want to be using a heavy paint.

“So we've had to look at that as well, and how do you get the reflective nature of the beautiful colour with the technology that we know we can paint onto an F1 car, and then put that through our spray guns to put it onto a road going car as well.

Aston Martin AMR21 F1 car

“It's been a long process, because you have to make sure that when people are passionate about colour, and they happen to come from the world of fashion in some instances and they know their colours, they love what you've done.

“Colour is something so important. How we perceive colour, how you perceive colour on screen, how you perceive colour in person in sunlight, on a grey day at Silverstone. It's a really, really important factor.

“And we have spent 12 months developing a colour. We've gone through numerous iterations on the livery. And, you know, up to the 59th minute of the 11th hour, it was being detail changed, getting things exactly right, as you would imagine.

“And I think when you see the car, it's spectacular. That's all we can hope for. And it will be the most beautiful colour on the grid.”

It’s clear that, while Aston Martin’s colours on the outside stand out as the most obvious change so far, inside the team, things are so much different as it heads in to 2021.

Aston Martin AMR21 F1 car