The Brazilian Grand Prix 2022 was held at the Interlagos motorsport circuit in Cidade Dutra, Sao Paulo. The Formula One Championship race is held under the name Sao Paulo Grand Prix, and it’s the location of the season’s penultimate race. The finale is scheduled in Abu Dhabi on 20th November, where the ultimate champion will be decided.
Mercedes F1 Team Announcement
On Friday, 11th November, the Mercedes F1 Team made a major announcement. Last year, they signed a sponsorship deal with FTX Trading Ltd in September 2021. The Friday announcement called for an early and abrupt termination of a multi-year partnership between FTX and the Mercedes F1 Team.
The statement mentioned that the partnership agreement with FTX had been suspended as a first step. The team was going to continue monitoring the situation over the weekend.
FTX Trading Ltd.
One of the largest cryptocurrency exchanges in the world, FTX Trading Ltd., filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the United States on Friday, 11th November 2022. The CEO, Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF), stepped down and was succeeded by John J. Ray III.
The value of cryptocurrencies plunged earlier this year, and the entire market took a big hit. FTX was aiming to restabilize itself and was more than optimistic. They had offered a rescue deal to rivals BlockFi, but they could hardly stay afloat.
People started pulling out because of doubts about the company’s future and finances. The company’s liquidity dried up in a few days, and the crypto trading company was required to raise $9.4 billion from investors and rivals.
FTX initially had a 32 billion dollars valuation, but customer withdrawals led to grave circumstances. There was no potential option for a liquidity rescue since Binance backed out of its rescue deal.
Mercedes F1 Team and FTX Sponsorship Deal
In 2021, Mercedes was the reigning Formula One Champions, and they signed a multi-year sponsorship deal with the world’s largest crypto exchange, FTX. Mercedes cars, including that of seven times world champion Lewis Hamilton and George Russel, boasted the FTX logo.
Despite news of trouble, on Thursday, 10th November, the Mercedes Formula 1 team said they would keep FTX branding on their cars over the weekend and closely monitor developments. When FTX formally announced its bankruptcy, the Mercedes F1 team announced the suspension of their partnership.
This was to be followed by removing the FTX logo from Mercedes race cars and other branded assets. In the free practice race on Friday, the Mercedes F1 team did not have FTX logos.
