When Red Bull Racing launches its 2013 RB9 chassis, you’ll find that the Infiniti name is a little more prominent than it has been in years past. You’ll also see a new name for the team as Red Bull Racing becomes Infiniti Red Bull Racing next season.
Infiniti announced their title sponsorship of the team after the Brazil season finale on Sunday. In the race, Red Bull driver Sebastian Vettel won his third drivers title in a row, while Red Bull Racing won his third constructors’ title in a row.
Infiniti’s sponsorship of Red Bull Racing began in the 2011 season and the luxury automaker will now become a key technical partner for the team. Infiniti will use the resources of Nissan Motor Company to assist Red Bull in developing energy recovery systems as set out in the 2014 F1 competition rules.
The move will also help Infiniti sell more cars as the brand expands into markets where Formula 1 is the dominant form of motorsport. In 2012, Infiniti started sales in Singapore, Chile, the Dominican Republic, South Africa and Australia, and two of those markets have equivalent F1 races (while most of the others have legions of F1 fans).
Infiniti will be launched in Hong Kong next year, and sales in Brazil are slated to begin in 2014. Expect significant marketing focus on this partnership in affluent markets (like Hong Kong, where Infiniti is headquartered around the world) and in racing-mad markets (like Brazil).
Infiniti’s title sponsorship for Red Bull Racing runs through the 2016 season and drivers Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber are returning for the 2013 season. As long as Infiniti Red Bull Racing remains one of the dominant teams in the sport, we would consider this a solid investment in Infiniti’s future.
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