The only Indian F1 team, Sahara Force India, has signed up Sergio Perez as its second race driver for the 2014 Formula One season and beyond. The 23-year-old Mexican Perez will team up with Nico Hulkenberg for the 2014 season, completing the line up for 2014.

The arrival of the highly regarded young driver in Formula One racing spells big sponsorship deals for the Indian corporates. Perez is sponsored by Mexican telecommunications company Telmex, which is owned by Carlos Slim, considered the richest man in the world.

The new appointee is set to bring in significant financial support in terms of sponsorship deals from Telmex, according to sources.

Jointly owned by Kingfisher’s Vijay Mallya and Sahara’s Subrata Roy, Sahara Force India has a 100 per cent new driver lineup for 2014. Last season, the Silverstone-based team was represented by Paul di Resta and Adrian Sutil.

With new changes to the design of the 2014 car, “the Indian F1 team was one of the earliest teams to sign a full powertrain package with Mercedes. All the mechanics should soon fall in place,” said sources.

It may be recalled that on October 2011, India team principal UB Group’s Vijay Mallya had sold 42.5 per cent stake in the F1 Force India Team to Subroto Roy’s Sahara Group. Mallya had bought the Spyker Ferrari F1 Team in 2007, for €90 million. In the 2008 F1 season, Mallya had renamed the Spyker Ferrari F1 Team as Force India. With the stake sale, the name was changed once again. “Getting Perez on board made sense as it would bring in the required jab-in-the-arm in terms of sponsorship deals from Telmex. The money would also boost the facilities at Sahara Force India, given that the sport is entering a new era of regulation next year,”' sources said, adding that global telecommunication companies have been calling the shots in F1 in terms of sponsorship, for some time now.

Revenues, profits up Christian Sylt, the co-author of an annual report called Formula Money, on the business of Formula One, has noted that despite recessions in the past five years, F1 has seen its revenues and profits go up to $1.6 billion in 2012 from $1.5 billion in 2011, though a majority of it came from promoters and broadcasting rights. Highlighting the importance of sponsors, Sylt has said the bulk of a team’s revenue comes from sponsorship.

Though tobacco company Marlboro remained the largest single F1 sponsor, the recent Formula Money report highlighted how the biggest single segment of F1 support has been telecommunciation companies, which contribute 19 per cent of sponsorship income. The figure is set to dramatically reduce when Vodafone’s $75-million a year sponsorship deal with McLaren expires at the end of this season.

Close behind global telecom companies in their sponsorship drive, the automotive industry accounts for 18 per cent of F1 sponsorship, while fashion brands account for 17 per cent, and finance companies 9 per cent, oil companies 5 per cent, travel companies 3 per cent and others are 17 per cent, according to the Formula Money report. The study showed that tobacco companies have been relegated to just 1 per cent as sponsors.

> amritanair.ghaswalla@thehindu.co.in

Related Topics
comment COMMENT NOW