In the round-up: Formula 1’s DRS zones will be branded at this year’s Las Vegas Grand Prix.
In brief
F1 gets first DRS sponsor
Williams sponsor Duracell will also lend its name to the DRS zones when Formula 1 returns to the Las Vegas Strip Circuit for the venue’s second round of the world championship next month. It is the first time F1 has added branding to a DRS zone. The brand’s logos will be illuminated using LED boards and incorporated into trackside signage and a nearby roof.
F1 introduced DRS in 2011 but will drop it at the end of next season. It will be replaced by a new system called Manual Override Mode.
New Formula E team reveals livery
“It’s more than just aesthetics,” said team principal Alex Hui, “this livery is a bold declaration of our identity as daring upstarts, ready to redefine the rules.
“We want this design to spark excitement, inspire our fans, and attract partners who share our drive for bold innovation and fearless competition.”
Tramnitz gets second season at MP
Tim Tramnitz will return to drive for MP in Formula 3 next year. He finished ninth in his rookie campaign this season and scored his first win in the partial-reversed-grid race at Monza.
Advert | Become a RaceFans supporter and
Links
Coyne buoyed by 'post-season podium' (Racer)
'We had Katherine turn the fastest lap of the race at race one in Milwaukee, and Jack turned the fastest lap in race two. And obviously, we all saw what Toby Sowery and Hunter McElrea did in our cars. So we’ve been getting better but just haven’t really shown it.'
Johnny Herbert: 'Would I have been world champion without the accident? I believe I could have been... but I'm not!'
Fishing, tennis, and storm chasing: Behind the Visor with Enzo Fittipaldi (Formula 2)
'I really enjoy tennis, it’s a very competitive sport.
“I think it's the closest sport to racing in terms of it being a very individual sport.'
We always endeavour to credit original sources. Got a tip for a link relating to single-seater motorsport? Please send it to us via the contact form.
Advert | Become a RaceFans supporter and
Social media
Notable posts from X (formerly Twitter), TikTok and more:
Applies to commentators too. Stops them coming up with silly theories for things which aren't allowed.
— Bob Constanduros (@BobConstanduros) October 21, 2024
Incredible experience at the @F1 in Austin. It's always great to return to this wonderful city. The venue @COTA here is top-notch and circuit provides great racing! #F1 #AustinGP #JSC7engineering pic.twitter.com/kiioV9xtLy
— Julien Simon-Chautemps (@julien_sc) October 21, 2024
Advert | Become a RaceFans supporter and
- Find more official F1 accounts to follow in the F1 Twitter Directory
Comment of the day
After the United States Grand Prix organisers were fined up to €500,000 for fans entering the circuit confines last weekend, @RBAlonso explains their concerns over how post-race track invasions are managed:
I was at the Italian GP, sitting at turn one specifically so that I could be underneath the podium. It was a crush, there was no other word for it.
Thousands of people forced into tiny exits, and once one person is seen on the track the rest follow and the pushing is more intense. I was with my two brothers, sprinting through the woodland to get to the first open gate. Both are fit six-feet men in their twenties. I’m six foot, three inches. It was horrific, particularly in 32-degree heat. There were a number of young women and children who were being crushed and it was difficult to breathe for several minutes.
This is not the way a modern sports facility should be run. There must be a queueing format, there must be rules and they must be followed. Otherwise, it’s going to end up in a serious accident.
@RBAlonso
Happy birthday!
Happy birthday to Sasquatch and Porschephile!
On this day in motorsport
Gusm.ai
22nd October 2024, 0:35
Quote on the last picture:
Prost: I were ahead on the apex
Senna: You dont keep a car’s width
Gusm.ai
22nd October 2024, 0:36
* you didnt…
Tommy Scragend
22nd October 2024, 7:04
Prost never reached the apex – he turned in way before it.
Coventry Climax
22nd October 2024, 11:22
That’s what the definition of apex requires you to do: Turn in before you get there. At what point depends on the shape of each turn, but at minimum, you’re driving silly amateur lines, and most likely won’t even make the turn at all if you don’t.
Apart from that I get what you’re saying and agree.
Doh
23rd October 2024, 8:47
In case you are thick he meant runes in much earlier than usual. Abcdefg….you know…
Doh
23rd October 2024, 8:48
Turned*
had to fill in the gap for you there too just in case you couldn’t figure it out
Gusm.ai
22nd October 2024, 0:41
On naming the DRS zones, I think NASCAR has everything sponsored.
The last addition seemed to be the restart zone.
Maybe we are a few years from F1 getting a title sponsor for the whole championship.
Christopher Rehn (@chrischrill)
22nd October 2024, 7:32
It would actually make some sense to give F1 itself a title sponsor, just how La Liga is sponsored by EA Sports or how Premier League historically as sponsored by Barclays. More than sponsoring a DRS zone, at least.
Coventry Climax
22nd October 2024, 11:29
Comparing it to a situation in football is no explanation as to why it would make sense – at all.
I don’t agree to it making sense in any type of sense, and that includes football.
The achievement ultimately, is made by the sporters. The sponsors just like and try everything they can to merely be associated with their success.
It’s as ridiculous as saying: “This sunset was brought to you by ..”
DaveW (@dmw)
22nd October 2024, 0:53
Looking forward to people saying don’t say MOM mode because it’s redundant.
SteveP
22nd October 2024, 19:10
Tautology is the word you want :)
LosD (@losd)
22nd October 2024, 5:36
“AND NORRIS OPENS HIS DRS, brought to you by Duracell, TO OVERTAKE RUSSELL”
Coventry Climax
22nd October 2024, 11:32
In all likelyhood, you’ve got the upper and lower case mixed up.
PacificPR (@streydt)
22nd October 2024, 18:58
The Random DRS Roulette is brought to you by Liberty! (Each lap one lucky driver will have his DRS openend automatically regardless of his or her position on the track!)
SteveP
22nd October 2024, 19:11
Someone finally found something more capable of randomising a result than rain.
Nick T.
22nd October 2024, 21:00
I believe the lower cases were meant to imply they would rapidly mention the sponsorship in a normal voice (like side effects in Rx TV commercials – though you probably don’t get those since they’re only legal in the US and NZ).
But I think they’d say “CHECO, POWERED BY DURACELL DRS, OVERTAKES GASLY TO MOVE INTO P15!” Or “that pass was brought to you by Duracell” after every DRS pass. lol I can’t wait.
Jere (@jerejj)
22nd October 2024, 6:38
A sponsor specifically for a DRS activation zone (only the Strip one, from what I’ve read) solely because of being a DRS zone is weird.
I wonder what next, a sponsor for a pit lane or specific corner or corner combo, be that Eau Rouge-Raidillon, Maggots-Becketts, or 130R, etc.
Johnny Herbert winning the world championship even once without his pre-F1 career accident in 1988, which I properly found out via his autobiography, wouldn’t necessarily have happened either way, given the teams & timing.
I attended the 2010 Italian GP & I didn’t experience anything similar when moving onto the S/F straight from the RHS grandstand before Rettifilo, or at least I don’t recall such a scenario of being crushed & struggling to breathe.
S
22nd October 2024, 8:06
Been done in dozens of places, and for many decades.
You mention 130R from Suzuka – but perhaps you’ve heard of Dunlop curve (turn 7)?
Jere (@jerejj)
22nd October 2024, 19:12
Yes, but that corner being Dunlop Curve has somehow never felt quite the same, although for that matter, Fuji Speedway has Coca Cola (T3 or 2, given the marginal right kink between isn’t a true corner) & Panasonic corner (last).
SteveP
22nd October 2024, 19:12
That the next Perrier brand variant?
Nick T.
22nd October 2024, 21:04
Herbert is never winning a WDC with anything less than the 1993 Williams. Guy is the British JV, but with none of the charm or intentional roguishness. He said after yesterday’s race that the bad steward calls are due to money. Guy is desperate to stay in the spotlight.
Christopher Rehn (@chrischrill)
22nd October 2024, 7:15
Duracell sponsoring DRS is the most American thing I have heard yet.
“DHL Fastest Lap Award” and “DHL Fastest Pit Stop Award” are up there, but “Duracell DRS zone” would go nicely with the “Virtual Safety Car brought to you by Wells Fargo” or the “Coca-Cola Official Formula 1 Pit Speed Limiter”. And why not introduce a “Purple Sector 1 award sponsored by Walmart”?
Sonny Crockett (@sonnycrockett)
22nd October 2024, 7:51
Lewis’ left nut, sponsored by Remington.
Moi
22nd October 2024, 7:20
“This gap in the rear wing had been brought to you by Boeing”
Sonny Crockett (@sonnycrockett)
22nd October 2024, 7:51
Very good!
rprp
22nd October 2024, 7:56
Superb.
Coventry Climax
22nd October 2024, 11:35
That put a big smile on my face. Thank you!
SteveP
22nd October 2024, 19:16
Wing? Must be there, these things don’t just fall off, you know.
Sorry, yes, it’s a Boeing…
Nick T.
22nd October 2024, 21:14
TBF, Boeing still has the best safety record and the recent issues were not the result of poor engineering or build quality. They had quality control issues (the bolts behind an inoperative emergency exit that was covered were not properly re-secured after an inspection). The two MAX accidents were due to the pilots not understanding the automated safety systems, which was due to Boeing giving in to airlines’ desire to not have 737 pilots get a new type certificate for the MAX – both of whom were driven by money).
Sonny Crockett (@sonnycrockett)
22nd October 2024, 7:50
It should’ve been sponsored by Andrex.
PacificPR (@streydt)
22nd October 2024, 21:28
Bison Kit.
Sonny Crockett (@sonnycrockett)
22nd October 2024, 7:54
Max Verstappen’s front bib, sponsored by Cheetos.
baasbas
22nd October 2024, 8:01
People are scoffing the Duracell DRS but it makes sense (…from a distance).
They could make the actual DRS zone very visible with a change in the boarding, make the detection points more visible for the tv viewers. Put some bunnies on there. A viewer will see a car go through an obvious Duracell branded zone and speed up. That seems like the association Duracell would like.
That it doesn’t make sense because it has nothing to do at all with battery power is probably lost on the general public anyway.
baasbas
22nd October 2024, 8:02
also.. I really like the ‘audience suggestions’ here.
Make a competition for it
Coventry Climax
22nd October 2024, 11:38
Since when is motorracing about doing what sponsors like?
Oh wait..
mantresx (@mantresx)
22nd October 2024, 17:48
Fun fact: Duracell aren’t legally allowed to use the pink bunny in the US, that’s exclusive to their competitors Energizer.
So don’t expect to see it in there, unless it’s in some added tv graphics for outside broadcast.
Nick T.
22nd October 2024, 21:18
That’s hardly a unique type of trademark and why would Duracell use a competitors’ mascot (or whatever you’d like to term it) anywhere other than to undermine them (I think they might have once used a bunny in a satirical way – showing it fall over after running out of energy).
Jere (@jerejj)
22nd October 2024, 19:14
The polystyrene boards on track surface level & a different one attached to catch-fencing have always been clear enough to recognize where an activation zone begins.
baasbas
24th October 2024, 7:23
@Jere
You’re thinking of F1 fans. I’m thinking about the average fan F1 is trying badly to attract. So I’m talking about changing the DRS zone to look like rainbow road, with a sound effect overlay and banging cymbal monkeys whenever activated
Craig
22nd October 2024, 8:08
“F1 gets first DRS sponsor”
That headline made me feel physically sick.
Keith Collantine (@keithcollantine)
22nd October 2024, 9:02
Couldn’t agree more. Nauseating.
notagrumpyfan
22nd October 2024, 11:34
Not sure if you watch many other sports (especially those from the USofA), but naming/sponsoring every little bit is quite common.
Not a fan, but not surprised either.
I get more upset (not sick) about the existence of DRS/MOM than whatever they call it.
MichaelN
22nd October 2024, 9:00
When we first had ESPN on the cable package, it was a huge eyeroll to see that everything from replays, highlights and historic clips had sponsors. Guess that’s just how the Americans like it. Same with the Indycar races and their silly names.
I doubt you’ll get a single European commentator to call it the “Aramco DRS zone”, or whatever. Nobody will take them serious after that.
Coventry Climax
22nd October 2024, 11:44
It’s not how the americans like it, it’s how all american companies work, including the promotors and broadcasters, and the audience has grown numb to it.
It’s just a matter of time before european commentators will start to voice this misery, especially when their jobs are on the line if they refuse.
MichaelN
22nd October 2024, 16:24
That’s the thing, I doubt you could get a European audience to get numb to it. It’s just too silly. Very few of the sponsored corner names make it into the lexicon. None of the race names do. Even the team names are stripped of all their sponsored extra’s. That stuff is just straight up ignored. Meanwhile the Americans are out there talking about the “Hy-Vee Salute to Farmers 300 presented by Google” with a straight face. And yes, that was an actual Indycar race in 2022.
PeteB (@peteb)
22nd October 2024, 16:24
It’s a different world over there when it comes to ads? If you listen to the winning driver talk after an Indycar race, he’ll spend 5 minutes thanking all the sponsors before he gets on to the race. They love it over there.
It’s the same with TV over there where there are more ads than shows. When I’ve got US tv on, I almost expect the ads to end with “we’ll be right back after the quick break.”
Nick T.
22nd October 2024, 21:19
Yeah. We just love seeing ads. That’s our thing! We don’t even want to movies or programs. We just want the commercials!
Dr.D
22nd October 2024, 9:03
I think they can make Fastest lap still work by giving more points for that lap but only for 1 random lap.
Like 17 laps in, a Duracell rabbit pops up next to the leaderboard, and the fastest driver on his next lap will get like 3 points.
We call it the “Duracell power lap”.
Let’s involve the Americans a bit more.
If that works, let’s get more Saudis onboard.
On the Duracell power lap, teams are allowed to use NOS.
S
22nd October 2024, 9:29
As facetious as you are being, that’s actually a decent idea.
Except for the NOS.
F1 isn’t dead, it has simply evolved. They’ve collectively realised that there’s more money in entertainment than there is in sport.
Phil Norman (@phil-f1-21)
22nd October 2024, 9:42
I feel a bit guilty for saying this, but I don’t altogether hate this idea. As a replacement for fastest lap. It would be a kind of random fastest lap. But then drivers/teams might just ignore it because of their strategy.
notagrumpyfan
22nd October 2024, 11:37
Maybe they could do the fastest lap before the race; ideally the day before to not interfere with the race.
And rather than awarding points, they might allow the driver to start from the front of the grid ;)
Coventry Climax
22nd October 2024, 11:47
Oh come on, that’s way too gimmicky!
(I assume people realise the same two characters you used last, apply here too.)
ferrox glideh (@ferrox-glideh)
22nd October 2024, 12:42
Well, that is it. I will never buy a Duracell battery again.
PeteB (@peteb)
22nd October 2024, 16:20
What a strange thing to sponsor… “Fans hate DRS – why don’t we associate all of that hate with our own brand?”
Coventry Climax
22nd October 2024, 18:47
Goes to show how much of an actual interest Duracell have for the sports of F1.
They love F1 alright, but for commercial reasons only.
Not that Duracell is any different from any of the other sponsors: They all expect something back, and it should be bigger that what they’ve put in in the first place. There’s no such thing as altruism in this world’s company life.
Nick T.
22nd October 2024, 21:22
I’ve worked for both PR and advertising agencies. You probably wouldn’t be shocked by how little they know about the sports and fans of those sports when they make marketing decisions. It’s the rule rather than the exception.