Aston Martin is illuminating the Las Vegas skyline as part of its largest-ever Formula 1® marketing presence, celebrating the intensity of the British ultra-luxury performance brand ahead of the highly anticipated Formula 1 Heineken Silver Las Vegas Grand Prix.
Putting its high-performance products at the heart of the innovative new event, Aston Martin’s partnership with the Las Vegas Grand Prix will see the brand’s largest VIP customer programme, activation of thrilling track experiences, and the display of immersive Aston Martin content on Sphere throughout the race week.
The new street circuit also becomes a digital environment on Aston Martin’s award-winning luxury configurator—the first time an F1® track has been featured in an automotive configurator.
Marco Mattiacci, Global Chief Brand and Commercial Officer of Aston Martin said: “With the United States being our largest market and brand community, the Las Vegas Grand Prix creates a new landmark in the F1 calendar and will see our biggest ever race marketing and VIP hospitality presence.
“Targeting much more than brand awareness, our activities are an example of how we are maximising the tremendous global platform of F1 to drive reappraisal of Aston Martin amongst new audiences, infuse our products with the sport’s high-performance DNA, and connect our community through unique luxury experiences.
“Data shows that our configurator traffic rises by 13% on F1® race weekends compared to non-race weekends, a statistic that has been as high as 30% this season when Aston Martin has been on the podium. With our new Las Vegas Grand Prix configurator environment going live this week, we believe this will draw even further technology synergies between track and road, while enabling our customers and fans across the globe to get a sense of the excitement in Las Vegas.”
Immersive content kickstarts Las Vegas Grand Prix
As part of Aston Martin’s Las Vegas Grand Prix partnership, Aston Martin debuted an immersive advertisement last night on the new Las Vegas landmark, Sphere, which has been developed over months by creatives challenged to bring the thrilling nature of the brand’s class-leading performance cars to life.
Visible from the circuit and repeated multiple times daily until lights out at the first Las Vegas Grand Prix in 41 years, the engaging 90-second sequence on Sphere commences by illuminating Aston Martin’s iconic wings before introducing the Scarab Beetle, the inspiration from which the Aston Martin winged marque was born in the 1930s, at the height of popular Egyptology and representing new beginnings.
Seeking to break free, the Scarab Beetle awakens onlookers by appearing to ‘shatter’ Sphere, before a dramatic reveal of the Aston Martin Aramco Cognizant Formula 1® Team’s AMR23 racecar, which completes a thrilling burnout, filling the surface with a layer of swirling smoke from its tyres. As the smoke clears, the world’s most powerful luxury SUV, DBX707, and the world’s first super tourer, DB12, appear in what is considered the largest-ever digital display of a car. Utilising the latest CGI technology, the advertisement gives the optical illusion of depth within Sphere, further igniting the senses of onlookers with an authentic impression of Aston Martin’s high-performance products on a huge, never-before-seen scale.
The biggest Formula 1® brand activation
Marking the 1100th round of the FIA Formula One® World Championship in Aston Martin’s 110th anniversary year, the Las Vegas Grand Prix will see the brand’s largest-ever F1® marketing programme. 45 thrilling Hot Laps of the unique track will be delivered for attending celebrities and VIP guests in DBX707 and the Vantage F1® Edition. More than 100 of the brand’s loyal customers will also be entertained on each day of the event in a bespoke Aston Martin hospitality experience.
For those wishing to escape the city, the brand is curating an exclusive off-road DBX707 adventure in the Nevada desert. Starting with an unforgettable private helicopter journey, offering a bird’s-eye view of the Las Vegas Strip Circuit™, guests will be flown over the Grand Canyon towards the magnificent Valley of Fire State Park, where they’ll feel the force of the world’s most powerful luxury SUV on an off-road driving route like no other, made up of stunning desert and red rock scenery.
From off-road to the track, DBX707 will be unleashed onto the all-new street circuit for an exclusive 15-minute demonstration following qualifying, showcasing the model’s unique performance capabilities and the ever-increasing road and track relevance of Aston Martin’s high-performance products.
Configurator innovation
For those not in attendance, Aston Martin is bringing the bright lights of Las Vegas to the screens of customers, fans, and dealer partners across the world through the introduction of a new Las Vegas environment onto its award-winning online configurator.
Having become the first manufacturer to allow customers to digitally specify their model in the surroundings of a Formula 1® pit garage earlier this year, Aston Martin is now taking customers to the track, the first time an F1® circuit is featured in an automotive configurator.
Situated on turn four of the street circuit, configurator users are propelled into the heart of the Las Vegas Strip and can create their own intimately personal Aston Martin alongside the official medical car of Formula 1®, DBX707, and the official safety car of Formula 1® Vantage, in the shadow of Sphere.
The configurator represents a key pillar of Aston Martin’s ultra-luxury strategy, giving clients the ultimate sense of freedom and expression when customising their cars, including through the Q by Aston Martin bespoke service. Recent years have seen significant growth, with a record number of Aston Martin units sold with bespoke touches and elements in 2022, representing a 51% year-on-year increase. Notably, the Americas is the fastest-growing region for Q by Aston Martin, with 92% year-on-year growth in 2022.
