Sponsors in F1: The successful relationship between Petronas and Mercedes

Although Petronas has been the title sponsor of the Mercedes team since 2010, the Malaysian company has often appeared with their name in the top class of motorsport. To be precise, fifteen years earlier. The name first appeared in 1995 as a sponsor for the Red Bull Sauber Petronas team. 

The team was even working on making its own engines in collaboration with Petronas, but the plan never got off the ground due to the economic crisis in Asia. Nevertheless, Petronas remained the sponsor of Sauber, even when it was taken over by BMW in 2006 to serve as a factory team for the engine manufacturer.

That changed when BMW announced that the company would leave Formula 1 at the end of the 2009 season. Mercedes was just looking for a new sponsor at the time.  On December 21, 2009, the signature was put under the contract and from the 2010 season, the Silver Arrows would race with the name Petronas on the chassis.

A successful collaboration

Unlike other title sponsors, Petronas is not only in the game for recognition. They work closely with Mercedes. The oil company provide the team with fuel and oil lubricant. It seems to work well for the team because the partnership has won six constructor titles and six world driver titles. Moreover, the progress and lessons that Petronas learns from Formula 1 can use it well for the products it makes for other companies.

In addition to collaborations with Formula 1 teams, the Petronas name was also associated with the Grand Prix of Malaysia for a long time. From 1999 to 2017, Petronas was the title sponsor of the race, which was held annually at the Sepang International Circuit. After 2017, the plug was pulled out of the race, as revenues continued to decline. Remarkably, the Mercedes-AMG Petronas Formula One Team won only one Grand Prix during the simultaneous collaboration.

This article originated on GPblog.com/nl - written by Ralph Beentjes