JOHANNESBURG – Aston Martin became the third team to hold a 2022 season launch, but they were the first to reveal the actual car that they'd be racing this season.
At the start of February, both Haas and Red Bull Racing decided to withhold parts of their design during their launch – Haas releasing computer-generated images while the Red Bull car on show was a combination of the 2021 and 2022 vehicle.
The Aston Martin AMR 2022 was revealed to the public in a 42-minute stream on their YouTube channel on Thursday, which featured interviews with drivers Sebastian Vettel and Lance Stroll among others.
Executive chairperson of Aston Martin Lagonda and the Aston Martin Aramco Cognizant F1 team, Lawrence Stroll, elaborated why the car manufacture returned to sport after a 61-year absence.
“We are continuing our journey to the summit of Formula 1, the most competitive and the most prestigious racing series in the world, and we want to win. But we know that winning isn’t easy that’s why we have a five-year journey and a plan to keep climbing and to get to the top. To win in Formula 1, everything has to be just in the right place and a lot of moving parts have to come together. The sport is constantly evolving and unless you evolve with it, you’ll be left behind,” Stroll said.
Several new regulations to the vehicles for the 2022 season have led to teams reworking the designs for the front and rear wings, the floor and to accommodate, for the first time in the sport, 18-inch tyres. The newly designed vehicles are expected to promote better racing and allow cars to follow closer.
Stood next to the newly unveiled car, driver Lance Stroll smiled with enthusiasm at the vehicle saying: "Its always an exciting time of the year when you see the car for the first time and especially this year, with these new regulations, the cars look so different."
Teammate Sebastian Vettel added: "Now you think: ‘Well, it’s ready, let's get into it’. It's more exciting to drive. Since this year, there’s so many novelties and so many things we are keen to find out and look forward to. I think it's been an incredible project with a lot of work that went in. And to see it from scratch and to see it now being built right in front of you and I can’t wait."
The Silverstone constructor struggled in the 2021 season where they finished seventh in the constructor's championship. Four-time world champion Vettel recorded the team's highest placing as he finished second in Azerbaijan. He hopes the changing regulations will mean the car is more competitive.
“I hope the field will be closer together and that will give us more chance to race and race more in the front than last year,” Vettel said.
The first pre-season test is scheduled for 23 February, with the season beginning on 20 March in Bahrain.
The upcoming reveals:
11 February – McLaren
14 February – AlphaTauri
17 February – Ferrari
18 February – Mercedes
21 February – Alpine
27 February – Alfa Romeo
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