Easily ignored is Vettel's statements on other subjects. As a driver I cannot see why he would be retained lol. Its over for him and its been over. As a technical driver he is probably light years ahead of Strolly Jr so I could see retaining him as they develop with the new rules we have. Who else is available also must factor and possibly he, Vettel is the current best option?
Vettel has never been one to develop "the car" either it suited him or he was rubbish in it. Now, whether it is worth <what> $5M-$15M for Vettel to teach jr. how to drive is to be seen from the vantage point of someone who has <essentially> enough money to throw vast sums away daily.
Some evidence it appears to Aston he add's 'value' and they wish to retain him. Im confused like you--- why.
Some teams like to have "celebrities" onboard, whatever their form at the moment, maybe for their experience. Lotus recruited ex-WDC Raikkonen after his sabatical. Ferrari recruited ex-WDCs Alonso, Raikkonen for a second time, and Vettel. McLaren recruited for a second time ex-WDC Alonso. Renault recruited for a third time ex-WDC Alonso. Aston Martin recruited ex-WDC Vettel In some cases, they didn't deliver much, it has to be said. In the case of Aston Martin, who would be available to become their Number One in 2023 ? In 2024?
The only reason why I believe AMRF1 retains Vettel is probably his "marketing" perspective for the DBX(suv) commercials. Whether Vettel "sells" the DBX from a marketing standpoint, I have no knowledge of. I honestly don't know what Stroll Sr. is doing with this company and the F1 team other than pumping alot of money into it from tactfull standpoint. Strategically, long term wise, I don't see it moving forward currently from the production-SUV platform and the F1 platform. That's my 2 cents.
I wouldn't be surprised if Aston Martin Lagonda is for sale in a few years time. Maybe we will discover then that most of the "investment" is only money owed to the banks. That's unfortunately the story of this company, which must be in its 9th or 10th ownership right now. Against the odds, Aston made very good cars, mostly under David Brown's tenure that started after WWII and ended in the 70s.
Agree Some said Lawrence Stroll even paid with his own financements the Valkyrie end of development..
Doesn't Larry have shareholders? His first responsibility is to his shareholders, not to his son or his ego.
I don't think Vettel is very marketable outside of F1 circles. Hell, even inside of it these days. IMO the only reason AM had Vettel is because they thought with their Merc based car in 21 he could do more and ofcourse with the 2022 rules everyone expected the Jordan employees to do a much, much better job, and it would then be an advantage to have a proven race winner/champion in their team. Not much that can be done with this dog of a car though. That vast salary Vettel is receiving is utterly wasted. Might as well have an F2 graduate in there. Thing is, a lot less embarrassing to have Stroll beaten by Vettel than Stroll beaten by an F2 driver.
Less embarrassing for who? Lance don't seem to care one way or the other. I noticed that the media don't harrass him much, like they do other drivers. As for his father, he must think the car isn't good enough yet, but will improve like he is probably told.
There's no headline in it for them. They can pressurise a poorly performing DR and have the press abuzz with rumours of his exit from the team. Stroll Jr. on the other hand has a safer seat than Verstappen does.
hearing from long time Aston owners that indeed seems to be the case, with quality of the cars having gone down (whereas the rest have stepped up).
Ok how long before he sells lol- Stroll attracts new Saudi Arabian investment to Aston Martin Aston Martin is set to be boosted by new investment from Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund in what executive chairman Lawrence Stroll calls a “game changing event.”
That's good news indeed ! ARAMCO already sponsors the F1 team, and the Saudi investment in the car company is very positive.
I didn't include Prost as he wasn't recruited by Williams as a "celebrity" to boost their image. He came, won the championship, and left. A true champ ! VENI, VEDI, VICI !!!
