Aston Martin signs Bond stunt driver and W Series racer Hawkins

Aston Martin has signed James Bond stunt driver and W Series racer Jessica Hawkins to the role of driver ambassador.

Hawkins enjoyed success in karting before moving up to Formula Ford and Formula 4, and has also competed in the British Touring Car Championship and the Jaguar I-Pace eTrophy. While her racing career also saw her take part in the first season of the all-female W Series in 2019 -- a category she will return to in 2021 on the Formula 1 support card -- Hawkins is also a stunt driver who works on the James Bond franchise where Aston Martin road cars feature regularly.

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“I am incredibly excited to be joining Aston Martin Cognizant Formula 1 Team as its new driver ambassador, and I am really looking forward to working with Lance Stroll, Sebastian Vettel, Nico Hulkenberg and the rest of the team,” Hawkins said. "In fact, although it will surely be a hell of a lot of hard work, it is a dream come true for me. Besides, I am definitely not afraid of hard work.

“I also want to pay tribute and say thank you to W Series, which is a brilliant championship without which I would simply never have got this unbelievable chance to work within such a great Formula 1 team.

“I will continue to race with W Series this year, and, despite my super-exciting new position, I will remain fully focused on driving my heart out in an effort to score as many points in the 2021 W Series championship as I possibly can.”

Aston Martin team principal Otmar Szafnauer says Hawkins will do a lot of work with the team’s partners, but the announcement simply states she will be involved “across a variety of disciplines” in the role.

“We are delighted to welcome Jessica Hawkins as Aston Martin Cognizant Formula 1 Team’s new driver ambassador,” Szafnauer said. “She has not had it easy in her racing career so far, always having to fight for drives as all young drivers do, especially young women, and her determination to beat the odds is as obvious as it is admirable.

“Jessica acquitted herself well in the inaugural season of W Series, 2019, finishing in the top 12 in the series’ standings, which success allowed her to progress to the next season of W Series, which will be run on the support card of eight Formula 1 grands prix this year.”