Williams title sponsor Rokit has extended its deal to back the team until the 2023 F1 season.
The telecommunications company became the team’s title sponsor in February this year following the departure of Martini. Rokit initially committed to a three-year deal, which has now been extended to five seasons.The news comes as a boost to Williams, which has languished at the back of the grid since the start of the year and remains the only team yet to score a point.
Williams deputy team principal Claire Williams said the deal “is a natural partnership based on shared values of innovation, engineering excellence and trust.”
“Rokit joined the team at a challenging time and it means a great deal to us that they believe in our vision and are committed to helping us achieve it. I’ve personally enjoyed working with the team at Rokit and look forward to continuing this work in the years ahead.”
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Phylyp (@phylyp)
11th July 2019, 10:07
I’m sure beating Rich Energy Haas F1 at Austria was a key factor in this extension. /s
Pat Ruadh (@fullcoursecaution)
11th July 2019, 10:10
Hahahaha
Nulla Pax (@nullapax)
11th July 2019, 10:27
I want a blue and black car with “Rich Rokit Robert Racing” on the side to put Kubica on the podium so he can give us all the finger for doubting him! :)
Jere (@jerejj)
11th July 2019, 13:15
@phylyp Beating one of their drivers to be precise courtesy of George Russell, which was also the case in Canada.
Phylyp (@phylyp)
11th July 2019, 13:24
@jerejj – ah, so each year of extension was for one such “victory”. Thanks, @jerejj!
Pat Ruadh (@fullcoursecaution)
11th July 2019, 10:29
I dunno, I think Williams need to be careful, these Rokit guys seem like charlatans.
I mean, the livery is nice and all, but has anyone actually seen a real tube of their toothpaste in the shops?
Phylyp (@phylyp)
11th July 2019, 10:31
@fullcoursecaution – easy there with your insinuations. Who do you think Rokit are? Rich Energy?
nase
11th July 2019, 12:03
@phylyp
Humour aside, the (unsurprising) news on Rich Energy have prompted me to look up the old discussions on Williams’ Rokit sponsorship. They’ve been keeping a relatively low profile ever since, but the allegations that there may be something very fishy afoot (not in the evolutionary sense) still ring in my ears. In particular, the anecdotes surrounding Jonathan Kendrick, while nowhere near Haas’ hirsute humourist-in-chief’s level of in(s)anity, well, they don’t quite set off my bull-o-metre’s alarm, but they’re not far from it.
Also, the fact that they apparently resorted to St. Petersburg-style information guerrilla tactics (sending at least one member to this very site, who registered shortly before the deal was made public, made a cover-up post on a completely unrelated topic and then made a couple of clearly partial comments on the day of the announcement before disappearing again), makes me all the more suspicious. You just don’t see this kind of gauche attempts to manipulate the public opinion with companies that actually invest actual money.
Phylyp (@phylyp)
11th July 2019, 12:07
Ooh, that’s worrying. I was hoping that things were clear and above-board (especially since Claire passed on Rich Energy), hence my comment below.
GeeMac (@geemac)
11th July 2019, 14:18
Kendrick is apparently a prickly character, but I don’t think we have any reason to doubt him or Rokit at this stage. He’s got success behind him and the product (unlike a certain energy drink) is real and is selling. Furthermore, if they weren’t good for the money they have to pay Williams, why would Williams agree to extend the title partnership for 2 more years?
Phylyp (@phylyp)
11th July 2019, 10:37
Humour apart, I have seen coverage of Rokit some months ago on a mobile-oriented website, so at least their products aren’t vapourware.
They seem to be targeting a segment of phone hardware + services (healthcare, vehicle assistance) which might be beneficial to elders, the mobility-challenged, etc.
While F1 might seem an expensive way of building a brand name, it is also a smart choice given the exclusivity of F1 having just 10 teams.
GeeMac (@geemac)
11th July 2019, 11:10
Good news for Williams on the day after Rich Energy decided to go fully mental. They really dodged a bullet by not getting into bed with Storey.