Aston Martin in Formula One

Aston Martin first participated in Formula One between 1959 and 1960, failing to score any points. They are due to enter as Aston Martin F1 Team in 2021 after a commercial rebranding of the Racing Point F1 Team.

Aston Martin

Full name	David Brown Corporation
Base	Newport Pagnell, United Kingdom
Noted staff	David Brown Ted Cutting
Noted drivers	Roy Salvadori Carroll Shelby Maurice Trintignant
Formula One World Championship career
First entry	1959 Dutch Grand Prix
Races entered	6 (5 starts)
Engines	Aston Martin
Constructors' Championships	0
Drivers' Championships	0
Race victories	0
Podiums	0
Points	0
Pole positions	0
Fastest laps	0
Final entry	1960 British Grand Prix

Aston Martin as a Formula One engine manufacturer

Formula One World Championship career
First entry	1959 Dutch Grand Prix
Last entry	1960 British Grand Prix
Races entered	6 (5 starts)
Chassis	Aston Martin
Constructors' Championships	0
Drivers' Championships	0
Race victories	0
Podiums	0
Points	0
Pole positions	0
Fastest laps	0

History

David Brown Corporation (1959–1960)

See also: David Brown Ltd.

The Aston Martin DBR4 which was driven by Roy Salvadori and Carroll Shelby.

Aston Martin first entered Formula One with the DBR4, their first open-wheel racing car. The DBR4 was first built and tested in 1957, but did not make its Formula One debut until 1959. This delay was caused by the company prioritising development of the DBR1 sports car, which went on to win the 1959 24 Hours of Le Mans. By the DBR4's world championship debut at the Dutch Grand Prix, it had become outdated and struggled for pace against its competitors, with Carroll Shelby and Roy Salvadori qualifying 10th and 13th respectively out of 15.[1][2] Salvadori retired from the race in the early laps with an engine failure, with Shelby's car suffering the same fate later in the race.[3]

The team's next entry came at the British Grand Prix where Salvadori surprised by qualifying in 2nd place.[4] Early in the race, one of Shelby's ignition magnetos failed, harming his car's pace. The second magneto failed late in the race, causing his retirement. Salvadori could only hold on to 6th place, narrowly missing out on a points finish.[5] At the Portuguese Grand Prix, both cars avoided issues to finish 6th and 8th but still failed to score points.[6] Aston Martin's final entry of the season was the Italian Grand Prix where both cars continued to struggle, qualifying only 17th and 19th.[7] During the race, Salvadori had ran as high as 7th before suffering an engine failure whilst Shelby came home to finish 10th.[8]

Aston Martin built the DBR5 to compete in the 1960 season. The DBR5 was based on its predecessor but was lighter and featured an independent suspension. However, the car had a heavy engine in the front and was regularly outclassed by the more commonplace rear-engined cars.[1][9] The team's first entry of the season came at the Dutch Grand Prix, but the DBR5 was not yet ready to compete. As a result, only Salvadori was entered into the race, driving the spare DBR4. He could only qualify 18th.[10] Despite being allowed to start the race, Aston Martin were told by the race organisers that they would not be paid. The team therefore refused to start the race.[11] The DBR5s were ready for the team's next race in Britain, with Salvadori and Maurice Trintignant taking part. Salvadori retired from the race with steering problems, and Trintignant could only finish 11th, five laps behind the leader.[12]

Following this string of poor results, with the team failing to score a single championship point, Aston Martin abandoned Formula One entirely after the British Grand Prix to focus on sports car racing.

Potential return and sponsorship (2010, 2016–2020)

Main article: Prodrive F1

In 2009, Aston Martin chairman David Richards announced his intent to return to Formula One in 2010 with the possibility of using the Aston Martin name, however, this did not come to fruition.[13] Between 2016 and 2020 Aston Martin served as a sponsor for Red Bull Racing, and as title sponsor of the team between 2018 and 2020.[14][15][16]

Aston Martin F1 Team (2021–)

Aston Martin are due to enter the 2021 Formula One World Championship as Aston Martin F1 Team after being rebranded from Racing Point as a result of a funding investment from Racing Point owner Lawrence Stroll.[16][17] Sergio Pérez is due to drive for them, carrying over the contract he has with Racing Point,[18] while Lance Stroll was later confirmed as a 2021 driver.[19] The team will enter using the Racing Point RP20 as the 2020 cars get carried over to 2021 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.[20]

Formula One World Championship results

(key)

Year	Chassis	Engine	Tyres	Driver	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	Points	WCC
1959	Aston Martin DBR4	Aston Martin RB6 2.5 L6	A D		MON	500	NED	FRA	GBR	GER	POR	ITA	USA		0	NC
				Roy Salvadori			Ret		6		6	Ret
				Carroll Shelby			Ret		Ret		8	10
1960	Aston Martin DBR4	Aston Martin RB6 2.5 L6	D		ARG	MON	500	NED	BEL	FRA	GBR	POR	ITA	USA	0	NC
				Roy Salvadori				DNS
	Aston Martin DBR5										Ret
				Maurice Trintignant							11
Source:[21][22][23]

References

1. "Aston Martin DBR4". ultimatecarpage.com. 18 March 2016. Retrieved 27 March 2020.
2. "1959 Dutch Grand Prix". motorsportmagazine.com. Retrieved 27 March 2020.
3. Denis Jenkinson. "1959 Dutch Grand Prix race report: Bonnier makes his mark". motorsportmagazine.com. Retrieved 27 March 2020.
4. "British GP, 1959". grandprix.com. Retrieved 27 March 2020.
5. Denis Jenkinson. "1959 British Grand Prix race report - A walk-over for British cars". motorsportmagazine.com. Retrieved 27 March 2020.
6. Denis Jenkinson. "1959 Portuguese Grand Prix race report: Moss trounces the field". motorsportmagazine.com. Retrieved 27 March 2020.
7. "1959 Italian Grand Prix". motorsportmagazine. Retrieved 27 March 2020.
8. Denis Jenkinson. "1959 Italian Grand Prix race report: Walker's cunning bests the reds". motorsportmagazine.com. Retrieved 27 March 2020.
9. Hamilton, Maurice (30 September 2017). "A brief history of Aston Martin and F1". ESPN. Retrieved 3 April 2020.
10. "1960 Dutch Grand Prix". motorsportmagazine.com. Retrieved 27 March 2020.
11. Denis Jenkinson. "1960 Dutch Grand Prix race report: Brabham throws kitchen sink (and more) at Moss to win". motorsportmagazine.com. Retrieved 27 March 2020.
12. "1960 British Grand Prix". motorsportmagazine.com. Retrieved 27 March 2020.
13. "Richards keen on Formula One return". BBC News. 23 April 2009. Retrieved 1 January 2010.
14. "Red Bull announce Aston Martin tie-up". formula1.com. 17 March 2016. Retrieved 26 March 2020.
15. "Aston Martin to become Red Bull title sponsor in 2018". formula1.com. Retrieved 26 March 2020.
16. "Racing Point set to become Aston Martin works team for 2021". formula1.com. Retrieved 26 March 2020.
17. "Aston Martin F1 team 'will need to be competitive from the outset' says Stroll". formula1.com. 1 April 2020. Retrieved 2 April 2020.
18. "Racing Point-Aston Martin integration 'happening already' says Szafnauer". formula1.com. 18 February 2020. Retrieved 26 March 2020.
19. "Vettel has one option less: Aston Martin sticks to current drivers". GP Blog. 18 May 2020. Retrieved 18 May 2020.
20. "FIA announce new F1 regulations to be delayed until 2022". Formula1.com. 19 March 2020. Retrieved 1 April 2020.
21. Small, Steve (1994). The Guinness Complete Grand Prix Who's Who. Guinness. pp. 333, 352 and 383. ISBN 0851127029.
22. "Aston Martin - Grands Prix started". statsf1.com. Retrieved 25 March 2020.
23. "Aston Martin - Grands Prix not started". statsf1.com. Retrieved 25 March 2020.