Sebastian Vettel, a four-time world champion and Lance Stroll will lead the Silverstone-based team in their second season under the Aston Martin banner.
The AMR22, which was unveiled on the factory floor at Aston Martin Lagonda’s Gaydon headquarters, has a curved aerodynamic shape mandated by revolutionary new laws that go into effect this year.
The livery has been altered as well, with lime details mixed in with a “refined version of the original green livery,” according to the team. On February 11, the car will make its public debut at Silverstone in a shakedown, marking the first time a 2022-spec car will turn a wheel in anger.
Last year, billionaire owner Lawrence Stroll, who was joined by Chief Technical Officer Andrew Green and Performance Director Tom McCullough for the launch, set in action a five-year strategy to turn the team into a World Championship contender.
“The Aston Clinton hill climb is roughly an hour’s drive from Gaydon, and it was there that Lionel Martin introduced Aston Martin to the world of competition,” Stroll remarked. That was the beginning of our Formula One team’s ascent, which continues to this day. We’ve devised a five-year strategy to keep ascending and reach the summit.”
“Look at that car,” Vettel continued, “who wouldn’t be delighted about the prospect of racing that?” And, when it comes to season expectations, I don’t believe anyone understands what to expect. There are new rules in place, and all of the teams will be hoping they are correct.
“Everyone, including myself, wants to win, and no one would be in Formula One if they didn’t want to win.” I am no exception. The most important thing is to keep moving ahead and upward. We’re only in year two of a five-year plan, so we’re just getting started. But this group has great goals and aspirations, and I’m very eager to be a part of it.”
“This is not only a tremendous opportunity for Aston Martin, but for all the teams,” Lance Stroll remarked. We simply have to think that we’ve done a better job, and I know that everyone involved is working extremely hard to ensure that Seb and I have the best chance possible.
Stroll stated, “Our main goal is to go closer to the front than we were last year.” “It’d be a step forward.” As Seb pointed out, it’s hard to predict where each team will finish until we all go on the track, and even then, you won’t know who has gotten it right until qualifying in Bahrain. I’m optimistic that we’ll make good progress this year at Aston Martin since we have some incredibly smart people.”
“All the teams and all the drivers will be dealing with a new set of regulations, so having the ability to learn and adapt will be important,” said Performance Director Tom McCullough. It adds something fresh to the mix, and when the new cars, equipped with 18-inch tyres, hit the circuit for the first time, we’ll be collecting a lot of data. How we handle it will be a litmus test for where we are as a company.
As a result of the new guidelines, everyone will begin with a pretty clean sheet of paper. You have to believe that teams that have been winning recently will start as favorites, but if one team gets a hold on anything critical before the others, that might be a game changer.”
Last year, the Mercedes-powered Aston Martin team placed seventh in the constructors’ title, with Vettel finishing second in the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, the squad’s best performance. This time around, owner Stroll will be hoping for a far stronger showing. Mike Krack, the new Team Principal, will take over before the start of pre-season training in Barcelona on February 23. He succeeds Otmar Szafnauer, who was previously the CEO of BMW.
