Robert Kubica appears to retain his position as reserve driver for Alfa Romeo Racing ORLEN after PKN ORLEN extended their partnership with the team until 2022.
PKN ORLEN joined the 2020 team as a main sponsor, with Kubica joining the team as a backup driver as part of the deal. The Polish racer has attended and filled in for a handful of free practice sessions and test days as part of his role Kimi Raikkonen in these years Dutch and Italian Grand Prix when the Finn tested positive for COVID-19.
Frederic Vaseur, the team principal of the Hinwil-based team, has welcomed the news that the partnership will continue in 2022 and he says PKN ORLEN wants to stay shows that Alfa Romeo is on the way to becoming a well-known team Companies can attract their Formula 1 team.
“We are delighted to extend our successful partnership with PKN ORLEN into its third year,” said Vasseur. “ORLEN is an instantly recognizable brand in a huge and growing market and they have proven to be loyal supporters of the team; Their presence underscores and reinforces our determination to be one of the most attractive teams in sport for global brands.
“Most importantly, we are committed to continuous improvement together, whether on the racetrack or in their business, and we are committed to continuing to grow together. Their activation campaign has been top notch, reaching fans across Europe and expanding access to the team and the world of Formula 1 and we can’t wait to unveil the next phases of this programme.”
Daniel Obaitek, CEO of PKN ORLEN, says the partnership continues to be a strategic investment for the company and the markets that Formula 1 has opened up for the company made the decision to remain a sponsor in 2022 an easy one.
“We operate globally, so we need to be active in every area, including planning marketing and sponsorship initiatives,” Obajtek said. “The competition on the F1 circuit is broadcast by 99 television sets and the total audience reaches up to 400 million viewers, according to research by the Nielsen studio.
“The media equivalent for the ORLEN brand from TV broadcasting only until November 2021 amounted to over PLN 550 million. Therefore, participating in the collaboration with Robert Kubica and Alfa Romeo Racing’s ORLEN team is a strategic investment for us.
“As a company with an international reach, we have successfully built a common platform for conducting marketing activities in many of the markets in which we operate. This paid off, the ORLEN Group recorded a net profit of PLN 2.9 billion in the third quarter of 2021 and increased its market share in Slovakia and the Czech Republic.”
Kubica is expected to share driving duties in 2022 Sauber Junior Team racer Theo Pourchaire, who will be beefing up his own development program as he looks set to stick with it FIA Formula 2 for a second season with ART grand prize.
