After weeks of speculation and meetings, Lawrence Stroll has successfully rescued Aston Martin. The British manufacturer was on the brink of a collapse until the Canadian stepped in. The billionaire led a consortium with a £500 million bailout, to keep the British manufacturer alive.
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The partial owner of the SportPesa Racing Point F1 team led a group that paid £182 million for a 16.7% stake in the company. To make matters better for Aston Martin, new shares have been projected to raise an additional £318 million.
After the acqusition, Stroll is set to become the Aston Martin executive chairman. The British automobile giants had to battle several issues, ranging from weak demand, a global auto slowdown and uncertainty over Brexit.
In the wake of the news, the carmaker’s shares soared as high as 30% in London. Initially, the 106-year old company expected its 2019 profit to plummet by nearly half from 2018. All this was despite healthy orders for its first ever SUV, the DBX.
As a bonus, the way is clear for Aston Martin to enter Formula One once again. This time, they will be taking over the Racing Point team in the 2021 season. Until then, the company will continue to sponsor the Red Bull Racing team till their contract ends.
History of Aston Martin in F1
This isn’t the first time Aston Martin and Formula One were closely associated. The outfit actually entered a team in 1959 and 1960, for only a handful of races. Unfortunately, they were not particularly successful, with a highest finish of 6th place at Aintree and Monsanto in 1959.
The team fielded the DBR4 and the DBR5 chassis’ in both seasons, with drivers, Roy Salvadori, Carroll Shelby and Maurice Trintignant. Salvadori clinched 6th place on both occasions in 1959, those they never scored any points.
Now, in 2021, Aston Martin will have another crack at Formula One, with Sergio Perez and Lance Stroll as the favourites to drive. However, there is an element of doubt surrounding Perez, who seeks a top drive.