{"id":60743,"date":"2026-01-20T01:50:26","date_gmt":"2026-01-19T14:50:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/f1chronicle.com\/?p=60743"},"modified":"2026-01-20T01:50:26","modified_gmt":"2026-01-19T14:50:26","slug":"mercedes-becomes-f1s-sole-safety-car-supplier","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/f1chronicle.com\/mercedes-becomes-f1s-sole-safety-car-supplier\/","title":{"rendered":"Mercedes Becomes F1\u2019s Sole Safety Car Supplier"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_80 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-transparent ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<div class=\"ez-toc-title-container\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Page Contents<\/p>\n<span class=\"ez-toc-title-toggle\"><a href=\"#\" class=\"ez-toc-pull-right ez-toc-btn ez-toc-btn-xs ez-toc-btn-default ez-toc-toggle\" aria-label=\"Toggle Table of Content\"><span class=\"ez-toc-js-icon-con\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/div>\n<nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/f1chronicle.com\/mercedes-becomes-f1s-sole-safety-car-supplier\/#Early-Controversy-Over-Aston-Martins-Safety-Car\" >Early Controversy Over Aston Martin\u2019s Safety Car<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/f1chronicle.com\/mercedes-becomes-f1s-sole-safety-car-supplier\/#Performance-Upgrades-Came-Too-Late\" >Performance Upgrades Came Too Late<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/f1chronicle.com\/mercedes-becomes-f1s-sole-safety-car-supplier\/#Mercedes-Steps-Up-Alone\" >Mercedes Steps Up Alone<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n\n<p>Mercedes will serve as Formula 1\u2019s exclusive supplier of safety and medical cars this season, with Aston Martin stepping back from the role after four years of shared duties.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Since 2021, Aston Martin had alternated safety car responsibilities with Mercedes, but it will not continue into the 2026 campaign. The decision ends a partnership that initially sparked debate within the paddock.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Early-Controversy-Over-Aston-Martins-Safety-Car\"><\/span>Early Controversy Over Aston Martin\u2019s Safety Car<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Aston Martin\u2019s first safety car, the Vantage <a class=\"wpil_keyword_link\" href=\"https:\/\/f1chronicle.com\/tout-ce-que-vous-devez-savoir-sur-la-formule-1\/\" title=\"Tout ce que vous devez savoir sur la Formule 1\" data-wpil-keyword-link=\"linked\" data-wpil-monitor-id=\"6486\">F1<\/a> Edition, drew criticism for its lack of performance compared to Mercedes\u2019 AMG GT Black Series. The car was around 45kg heavier and down roughly 200bhp, making it noticeably slower on track.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>That disparity became a talking point at the 2022 Australian Grand Prix, when Max Verstappen famously labelled the Aston Martin the \u201cgreen turtle.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cThe safety car was driving so slow, it was like a turtle. Unbelievable,\u201d Verstappen said at the time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Performance-Upgrades-Came-Too-Late\"><\/span>Performance Upgrades Came Too Late<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Aston Martin responded with significant upgrades in later seasons. For 2024, the Vantage received larger turbochargers, improved cooling and revised camshafts, lifting output to 656bhp. Further improvements arrived at last year\u2019s <a class=\"wpil_keyword_link\" href=\"https:\/\/f1chronicle.com\/dutch-grand-prix-fast-facts\/\" title=\"2025 Dutch Grand Prix: Fast Facts\" data-wpil-keyword-link=\"linked\" data-wpil-monitor-id=\"6487\">Dutch Grand Prix<\/a> with the introduction of the Vantage S, producing around 670bhp and featuring aerodynamic enhancements, including a new rear deck spoiler.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Despite those steps forward, Aston Martin has elected not to continue in the safety car role. While no official reason has been given, commercial considerations are believed to have influenced the decision.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Mercedes-Steps-Up-Alone\"><\/span>Mercedes Steps Up Alone<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Mercedes now assumes full responsibility for both the safety and medical cars across the entire season. The manufacturer has supplied F1 safety cars since 1996 and has run the AMG GT Black Series since 2022, most recently in a red livery carrying CrowdStrike branding.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The medical car remains the Mercedes-AMG GT 63 S, producing 639bhp and capable of accelerating from 0\u2013100km\/h in just 3.2 seconds, ensuring rapid response when required.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>From&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/f1chronicle.com\/come-il-viaggio-influisce-sulle-squadre-di-f1\/\">F1 news<\/a>&nbsp;to tech, history to opinions,&nbsp;<strong>F1 Chronicle has a free Substack<\/strong>. To deliver the stories you want straight to your inbox,&nbsp;<em><a href=\"https:\/\/f1chronicle.substack.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">click here<\/a><\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>For more F1 news and videos, follow us on&nbsp;<strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.msn.com\/en-gb\/channel\/source\/F1%20Chronicle\/sr-cid-d092ae2f0f4afb32?disableErrorRedirect=true&amp;infiniteContentCount=0&amp;cvid=61ae8e6021fd4158b1b5ea7b729a2a47&amp;ei=9\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Microsoft Start<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>New to Formula 1? Check out our&nbsp;<strong><a href=\"https:\/\/f1chronicle.com\/f1-glossary-comprehensive-guide-to-f1-terms\/\">Glossary of F1 Terms<\/a><\/strong>, and our&nbsp;<strong><a href=\"https:\/\/f1chronicle.com\/a-beginners-guide-to-formula-1\/\">Beginners Guide to Formula 1<\/a><\/strong>&nbsp;to fast-track your F1 knowledge.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Mercedes will serve as Formula 1\u2019s exclusive supplier of safety and medical cars this season, with Aston Martin stepping back from the role after four&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":30,"featured_media":60746,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"MSN_Categories":"Sports","MSN_Publish_Option":true,"MSN_Is_Local_News":false,"MSN_Is_AIAC_Included":"Empty","MSN_Location":"[]","MSN_Add_Feature_Img_On_Top_Of_Post":false,"MSN_Has_Custom_Author":false,"MSN_Custom_Author":"","MSN_Has_Custom_Canonical_Url":false,"MSN_Custom_Canonical_Url":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[231,1395,51],"class_list":["post-60743","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-f1-news","tag-f1","tag-f1-news","tag-formula-1"],"acf":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-02-11 20:35:28","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/f1chronicle.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/60743","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/f1chronicle.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/f1chronicle.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/f1chronicle.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/30"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/f1chronicle.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=60743"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/f1chronicle.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/60743\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/f1chronicle.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/60746"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/f1chronicle.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=60743"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/f1chronicle.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=60743"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/f1chronicle.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=60743"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}