Mercedes name will not be dropped from Formula 1 - Toto Wolff

Mercedes

Mercedes name will not be dropped from Formula 1 - Wolff

German manufacturer pushing AMG links in F1

Ian Parkes

Thursday 15 October 2020 13:37

Toto Wolff is adamant the Mercedes name will not be dropped from Formula 1 despite the manufacturer recently announcing it is to intensify the AMG link.

Mercedes-Benz chairman Ola Källenius stated at an investor conference last week the company would "leverage Formula One even more for AMG going forward" as it sought to strengthen the ties between the sport and road car technology.

Although known as Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 Team, there had been suggestions 'Mercedes' would be dropped and the team would be rebadged solely as AMG.

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This would have followed Renault's recent lead given the French manufacturer is to be renamed Alpine from 2021 as part of the restructuring of its four brands.

But Wolff said: "It lies in the DNA of Mercedes to race. The first-ever Mercedes was a race car.

"We build road cars, we build race cars, but the new strategy going forwards is to give the sub-brands a larger marketing platform, and it's AMG, EQ, Maybach, and it's good that each of those brands gets a specific touch.

"AMG is our high-performance brand and Formula 1 cars are high-performance cars.

"The Mercedes name is not going to be dropped from Formula 1, on the contrary, it's always going to be Mercedes, the chassis is going to be a Mercedes, the team name is going to be a Mercedes, and we are all Mercedes people."

Wolff believes it is crucial for Mercedes to shine a light on AMG, and that using F1 as a marketing platform is the way forward.

"In addition, we are also AMG," added Wolff. "We represent AMG as a high-performance brand, and we want to increase the visibility of AMG, which exists today.

"There is technology transfer, the company just gives it more marketing exposure, and showcase the technology transfer that happens between AMG and the Mercedes Formula 1 team."

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