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Formula 1 will see a significant change to its safety car and medical car arrangements from the 2026 season, with Mercedes becoming the sole supplier after Aston Martin confirmed it will step back from the role. This marks the end of a partnership that began in 2021, when Aston Martin and Mercedes started sharing responsibility for providing safety vehicles on the grid.
The decision was first revealed by The Race and later confirmed by Aston Martin, which stated that the agreement had simply concluded at the end of the 2025 season. While no detailed explanation has been offered, it is believed the move may be driven by commercial considerations rather than performance or operational concerns. Aston Martin also stressed that the partnership had been valuable during its early years back in Formula 1.
Aston Martin’s initial involvement as a safety car supplier drew widespread attention and some criticism. The upgraded Vantage F1 Edition used at the start of the partnership was noticeably heavier and significantly less powerful than the Mercedes AMG GT Black Series. The Aston Martin weighed around 45 kilograms more and produced roughly 200 brake horsepower less than its Mercedes counterpart, which affected its pace during safety car periods.
This performance gap became a major talking point during the 2022 Australian Grand Prix. Red Bull driver Max Verstappen openly criticised the car’s speed, famously nicknaming it the green turtle. He expressed frustration after being forced to circulate at
what he felt was an unnecessarily slow pace, questioning why the field was limited to around 140 kilometres per hour on the back straight when there were no damaged cars on track. His comments highlighted the importance of safety car performance in maintaining tyre temperatures and race flow.
In response to early criticism, Aston Martin worked to improve its safety car offering. At the start of the 2024 season, the brand introduced an upgraded Vantage with significant mechanical changes. These included larger turbochargers, enhanced cooling and revised camshafts, resulting in a power increase of around 150 brake horsepower, taking the total output to approximately 656 brake horsepower.
Further improvements arrived later that year at the Dutch Grand Prix, where Aston Martin debuted the Vantage S safety car. Powered by a 4.0 litre twin turbo V8 producing around 670 brake horsepower, the Vantage S also featured aerodynamic updates such as a new rear deck spoiler, along with other performance enhancements designed to ensure it could keep pace with the demands of modern Formula 1.
Despite these upgrades, Aston Martin has chosen not to continue beyond 2025. In a statement, the team reflected positively on its involvement, noting that the role helped amplify the brand’s return to Formula 1 and provided strong visibility during its first five years back on the grid.
From 2026 onwards, Mercedes will take full responsibility for supplying both the safety car and the medical car for the entire Formula 1 season. This move returns Mercedes to a sole supplier role and brings an end to the shared arrangement that has been in place since 2021, marking another quiet but important shift ahead of Formula 1’s new regulatory era.
