Formula 1 News: McLaren livery to 'stay recognizable'

(GMM) McLaren has unveiled Mastercard as its first title sponsor in more than a decade – but CEO Zak Brown insists the famous papaya livery will remain.

“Don’t worry, the car will remain recognizable,” he told Dutch newspaper Algemeen Dagblad at the Amsterdam launch.

The deal, thought to be worth a whopping $100 million per season, could be the largest sponsorship agreement in Formula 1 history and certainly in McLaren’s. It is also the first title sponsorship since Vodafone departed the team in 2013.

Brown said the partnership was framed with fans in mind.

McLaren’s official release opened with the line “There is no one more important to us than our awesome fans” and featured pictures of female supporters front and center. Mastercard will expand the tie-up with a new “Team Priceless” initiative, offering behind-the-scenes access, hot laps and curated experiences at grands prix.

Brown said: “I could not be more delighted to enter this next chapter in our partnership with Mastercard. They share our passion and values, and becoming naming partner is the perfect launch pad to keep pushing both on and off track.”

Mastercard’s marketing chief Raja Rajamannar added: “McLaren Racing represents the pinnacle of innovation, precision, and performance, values that mirror our own. Becoming a naming partner takes our fan-first commitment to the next level.”

Former F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone hailed Zak Brown for overseeing what could be set to become a new ‘McLaren era’ in Formula 1.

“Zak Brown is doing a very good job,” he told sport.de. “I told him once ‘I don’t think you’re very talented, but one of your talents is that you choose the right people to work for you.

“He has the right people around him, and he keeps them together.”