Aston Martin’s Otmar Szafnauer says the British F1 team ‘have all the ingredients’ to be competitive as their rebranded selves.
Aston Martin produced a highly competitive machine in 2020 – one that did its part to earn them their eventual fourth in the constructors’ championship in their last year under the Racing Point name. With a renamed outfit and a renewed hope for the season, the Silverstone-based team enter 2021 in high spirits.
With the confirmation of a new title sponsor in Cognizant coming on the seventh of the month came assurances that their funding would be sufficient, especially as they embark on the construction of a new factory. Granted, this matter was a concern to few given the team’s well-off backers.
These factors lead Aston Martin boss Szafnauer to state that the team is in a position to succeed. The British F1 team has ‘every reason to be excited’ for the coming years, he said, before adding further, “With a new name, committed shareholders, fresh investment, and an experienced team, we believe we have all the ingredients in place to compete for even more podiums and hopefully victories too.
“By the end of 2022, we’ll also have a fantastic new factory at Silverstone, giving the team the space and infrastructure to realize our ambitions. We have a new title sponsor in Cognizant with the expertise to add value in all areas of our IT operations and make a valuable contribution to our performance on-track.
“It’s the start of a new journey and I can sense an extra energy in the team, with a determination to push performance further than ever before. Combined with some of the most creative minds in the business, a true racers’ mentality and the can-do spirit that has served us so well through the years, we have every reason to be excited about the future,” summed up Szafnauer.
It will be the team’s fifth rebranding in their history, after their initial name of Jordan was wiped away for the creation of Midland in 2006, before that became Spyker in 2007, and Force India in 2008. It lasted until 2018, when it gave way to Racing Point – a team that has now become Aston Martin. Throughout this time, Szafnauer rightly points out, each of these teams earned a reputation for their efficiency, and he feels that they can continue this under the new name to represent the manufacturer well.
“We’ve had almost a year of preparation to reach this point and we’ve been thrilled to see the positive reaction since we revealed our new identity as the Aston Martin Cognizant Formula One Team,” said Szafnauer. “Representing such an iconic brand is a huge privilege for every member of the team.
“It might sound daunting, but we’ve been competing in Formula 1 for 30 years [under various names], winning races and taking podiums along the way – often against the odds. We’ve earned a well-deserved reputation for punching above our weight, so we’re confident we can do the Aston Martin name proud right from the get-go,” Szafnauer said.
The Brit goes on to say that their efforts to develop new facilities, whilst balancing a rebranding and developing a car in accordance with entirely new regulations, has proved a monumental challenge. “It has been a mammoth task,” he began.
“It’s easy to forget that we’ve been putting the groundwork in place for a brand-new era alongside a very challenging global setting, all the while balancing those tasks with our most successful Formula 1 season to date – including a race win and multiple podium finishes en route to fourth place in the Constructors’ Championship.
“Everybody involved should be extremely proud of that achievement and I think it demonstrates that while this is a new team name and identity, we have retained the strong backbone that has guided us through some tough times to where we are today.
“While the challenge was once establishing ourselves as the most efficient team on the grid, now there’s an exciting opportunity to establish ourselves as a top team, while still maintaining that efficiency, in order to add an exciting chapter to the Aston Martin legacy,” Szafnauer said in summation.
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