The 10 most legendary Formula 1 sponsorships

It is not a secret that Formula 1 is a costly sport financially.

Having a team on the grid requires a significant financial investment, which cannot be provided solely by the managers of the groups or car brands (such as Mercedes, Ferrari, Alpine, or Alfa Romeo) that are encouraged to participate.

Having said that, advertising and marketing are essential tools to compete in the most prestigious category of motorsport under minimally dignified conditions.

This is because of the boost it means on a monetary level and how it indirectly affects performance.

Some of you probably don’t remember seeing them, while others of you probably do: F1’s fictitious corporate backers.

As in the Grand Circus, every little thing counts, so in the following lines, we will pay tribute to the businesses that decided to be a part of it and that went above and beyond simply giving color to single-seaters that set trends.

1. Mclaren and Mercedes for the West

The cigar company West was Mclaren’s primary sponsor from the 1997 season through the 2005 season.

Because of this, the single-seaters that were being driven at the time by the Finnish driver Mikka Hakkinen and the Scottish driver David Coulthard underwent a significant transformation in terms of their overall aesthetic.

The Woking squad looked fantastic in that black-and-white color scheme, which isn’t saying much.

Hakkinen celebrated the two world titles he won in 1998 and 1999 under the banner of that alliance and those colors, so it can be said that it brought him a lot of luck.

In addition, during the previously mentioned period, the team amassed a total of 44 victories.

It is also important to note that in nations where it is illegal for tobacco companies to sponsor sporting events, the name of the driver who competed in the event was displayed instead of the tobacco company’s name. Unforgettable.

2. A special presentation by John Player featuring Lotus, Ford, and Renault

Another tobacco company, this one, has strong ties to the now-defunct Lotus racing team.

The contrast between the gold of its silkscreen and visual identity and the black of the car worked very well together.

1972 was the year he made his debut, and that same year he won the championship alongside Emerson Fittipaldi.

That year, the team’s competition also won first place overall.

The latter was revalidated in the following year’s racing season, but it was not until 1978, five years later, that it returned to the top with drivers such as Andretti and Peterson.

After a period of absence, JPS returned in 1981 to decorate the cars of Elio De Angelis and Nigel Mansell, who did not taste the sweetness of success despite frequently rubbing shoulders with the greats in their field.

JPS decorated the cars of Elio De Angelis and Nigel Mansell.

They also had the honor of driving alongside Ayrton Senna, but the Brazilian driver did not take the championship with them. In 1986, their connection with Formula One ended for good.

3. Parmalat – Brabham BMW

Dedicated to the dairy industry, this Italian company began its journey through the championship as a partner of the Brabham team, which was owned by Bernie Ecclestone, who would go on to become the head of the Grand Circus.

Parmalat was able to perfectly match, from a chromatic point of view, the colors used by BMW, which was the supplier of the turbo engines used in the early 1980s.

As with the teams that came before them, they had a lot of success, which can be attributed to the Brazilian driver Nelson Piquet, who won the championship during the 1981 season.

Because of this, it is not possible to claim that they achieved a great deal of success.

Nevertheless, their time frame was more condensed, specifically between 1979 and 1983.

Who knows if we will ever have it again, sponsoring a team in the not-too-distant future; nobody can predict the future.

4. Petronas-Sauber and Mercedes-AMG, respectively

Because Malaysia used to host the Grand Prix on an annual basis before the pandemic, the country has maintained a significant connection to the Formula One racing series for a considerable amount of time.

Since its inception in 1974, the oil company Petronas has held the position of being the state-owned enterprise of the Asian nation.

In addition to this, it has placed a significant amount of emphasis on the sponsorship of teams competing in the Grand Circus.

Initially, it competed with the Sauber team from 1995 to 2009.

During that time, it adapted to the various paint schemes the Swiss cars sported, including a light blue and green color scheme and then a navy blue and white color scheme.

The tremendous success they had to celebrate was Polish driver Robert Kubica’s victory in the Canadian Grand Prix in 2008 and their third-place finish in the constructors’ standings.

Things were entirely different with Mercedes, as they were by their side throughout their reign as the dominant force in the hybrid era between 2014 and 2020 and continue to be so to this day.

5. Marlboro, which sponsors McLaren and Ferrari

Marlboro has been honored to participate in the championship game alongside two of the most illustrious teams in sports history, up to the very top.

In the days of Senna and Prost, it was first seen adorning the Mclaren, and later, during Ferrari’s golden age with Kaiser Michael Schumacher, it was seen on the Ferrari.

Because of this, his public exposure was unparalleled while betting on Formula One.

When it came to the English cars, he gave them a red and white paint job, and when it came to the Prancing Horse, he added his name to the rear wing and around the air intake.

Since 2008, even though it continues to be a sponsor of the Italians, it is not allowed to display its nomenclature or logo on the exterior of the car because it is a single-seater, and tobacco companies are not allowed to have their branding said there.

In the year 2022, he decided to bring his journey to an end.

6. Red Bull-Sauber and the company’s racing team

Red Bull made its first foray into the top category for four-wheeled vehicles in terms of advertising when it collaborated with Arrows and the blue and green Saubers that were previously mentioned.

The energy drink made a significant contribution, both in terms of its logo and its name, to the Swiss team in 1995.

Subsequently, between the late 1990s and the beginning of the 21st century, it did so covertly when it sponsored those two more modest teams.

The arrival of Petronas caused him to lose his visual prominence in Sauber, specifically.

Since 2005, he has been the owner of his own Formula One team, a behemoth of the modern sport that ruled the sport between the years of 2010 and 2013 with Sebastian Vettel and is currently attempting to rewrite those times with Max Verstappen.

Its incredible baggage includes five drivers’ and four constructors’ titles.

7. Rothmans — Williams, and March

It is impossible to comprehend a significant portion of the history of Williams without the involvement of Rothmans, a tobacco company based in the United Kingdom.

Rothmans was the team’s sponsor from 1994 until 1997, a period during which Williams experienced many memorable, as well as tumultuous, moments.

Because he was an unwitting participant in the accident that resulted in Ayrton Senna’s death at Imola during his debut, the beginnings were highly challenging.

On the other hand, he was awarded the title of world constructor, so things turned out pretty well for him in the end.

It wasn’t until 1996 that it finally reached the pinnacle of success thanks to the efforts of the British racer Damon Hill, who had brought it so close to victory in the two races before that with two second-place finishes.

His time spent in the Grand Circus, which had begun with a short stint in March of 1982, was highly fruitful and creative.

8. Santander – Mclaren, and Ferrari

Banco Santander was inspired to explore sponsorship opportunities in Formula One due to Fernando Alonso’s move from Mclaren to Ferrari in 2010.

This move occurred three years after Alonso’s initial landing at Mclaren. The Spanish financial institution can take pride in the fact that it has established ties with only historic teams.

Mclaren threw away the drivers’ championship in 2007 when they could have easily won it by allowing controversies to arise between the two-time champion and Lewis Hamilton.

In 2010, in a different setting, it placed a wager on the Prancing Horse, very enthusiastic about the prospect of claiming victory once more, and it came up short by a hair in both 2010 and 2012.

In 2022, he returned to the squad to ride alongside Carlos Sainz, a fellow Spaniard, during the latter’s time in red.

Will you see him wearing a shirt with his name and logo in the ring? How things turn out is up to time.

9. Martini—Tecno, Brabham, Lotus, Ferrari, and Williams

There have been as many as four different vermouth brands throughout the history of the championship, making it likely that this particular brand is the one that has sponsored the most teams overall.

It introduced itself to the lowly Tecno team, which later became the Martini Racing Team and competed in 1972 and 1973, and displayed its stickers on the red of its chassis.

It also exchanged pleasantries with the Martini Racing Team.

It didn’t take long for it to make a comeback; in 1975, Brabham was the team that brought back the iconic red and blue racing stripes on their otherwise white race cars.

They were given another opportunity in 1979 with Lotus, which appeared to be environmentally friendly; however, its development was prematurely stopped to go all out in 1980, which caused them pain and ultimately caused them to leave.

The results did not accompany them, and they were forced to leave.

Although they also accompanied Ferrari in their best times but with a very discreet presence of their logo, their most recent experience was in the hands of Williams, with an aesthetic that was very similar to that of the Brabham that was their hallmark between 2014 and 2019.

However, between 2014 and 2019, they were known for their Brabham-inspired designs.

10. Camel, consisting of Lotus, Larrousse, and Tyrrell

Camel was one more tobacco company that bet very heavily on Formula One in the past, as can be seen, and between the years 1987 and 1990, it did so by sponsoring the Lotus race car that was driven by great stars such as Senna and Piquet while the car was bathed in the color yellow by Camel.

However, the lackluster results compelled him to quit.

Before the late 1980s, he had previously colored Larrousse and Tyrrell on his flanks, but he did not have the same level of notoriety as he did then.

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