PR97654

LONDON, Sept. 2, 2022 /PRNewswire=KYODO JBN/ --

At this year's FORMULA 1 HEINEKEN DUTCH GRAND PRIX 2022, VELO in partnership

with The McLaren F1 Team, are shining a spotlight on motorsport fans with the

launch of a bespoke love-inspiring branding design on The McLaren F1 Team's

car. Diving deeper into the unexpected world of fans, this exciting reveal

sparks the beginning of a new and inspiring content series by VELO and The

McLaren F1 Team, where they uncover the unique stories of The McLaren F1 Team

fans and their unwavering love of motorsport.

The fan-focused design will feature the word 'LOVE' on both sidepods made up of

names and messages from fans of The McLaren F1 Team around the world, placing

them at the heart of elite motorsport – on the car as it races around the

track. Driven by racing legends Daniel Ricciardo and Lando Norris, the bespoke

'LOVE' lettering will debut in a country known for its culture of love – The

Netherlands – at the FORMULA 1 HEINEKEN DUTCH GRAND PRIX 2022, where the host

country's orange 'fan-army' meet McLaren's papaya 'fan-army' for a

brightly-coloured race weekend.

Selected through a global competition which pulled in 2,700 entries, the 'LOVE'

lettering includes the names and messages of 95 fans from multiple countries,

ethnicities, and backgrounds, highlighting the growing diversity of motorsport

fans. Messages from the fans include "Viva La Papaya" from Andrew. The launch

is part of VELO's new campaign, LOVE THE UNEXPECTED, which is all about

celebrating motorsport fans and their unexpected stories. Tapping into the

constantly changing face of motorsport fandom, VELO and The McLaren F1 Team are

championing the love and passion fans have for the sport on a global scale. The

series will uncover the untold tales of fans of The McLaren F1 Team and their

exciting stories, delighting them with new ways to experience the sport.

John Beasley, Group Head of Brand Building, BAT, comments: "We wanted to do

something different and unexpected that celebrated our love for the fans whose

passion and energy fuels the sport. With the support of our partnership with

The McLaren F1 Team, we've offered fans a unique opportunity to see their name

race around the track in front of the global motorsport fanbase. This is just

one example of VELO's passion to deliver unexpected experiences for fans, and

we want to continue to celebrate those that make the sport what it is today. By

uncovering their passion and drive for motorsports and the ways in which they

celebrate it, our fan-focused videos showcase the exceptional world of

motorsport fans and their captivating stories of love for the sport."

Lou McEwen, Executive Director, Brand & Creative, The McLaren F1 Team,

comments: "Fans are at the heart of every sport, but motorsport fandom is like

no other. Through the partnership with VELO, we have placed fans firmly on the

focal point of motorsport, the car, and have championed their captivating

stories with our fan-focused videos. The bespoke 'LOVE' lettering is the first

time that fans and their messages have been featured on the car and we are

proud to celebrate some of McLaren's greatest supporters."

Launching from 22nd September, VELO and The McLaren F1 Team's Love the

Unexpected content series will begin to release the fan stories – from the

weird to the wonderful – highlighting the love these fans have for the sport

that is driving the new face of elite motorsport culture. The fans include:

MATTHEW POAT[https://www.instagram.com/racingchocs/] – Minutes away from the

Silverstone Circuit, Matthew Poat aka Racing Chocs, creates bespoke

motorsport-themed chocolates. Matthew has combined his love of motorsport and

The McLaren F1 Team with his passion for chocolate, creating a bespoke career

as a chocolate engineer. VELO and Matthew will dive into the delicious world of

chocolate, uncovering Matthew's creative flair and talent for creating

racing-themed sweet treats inspired by The McLaren F1 Team

ALEX CREES[https://www.instagram.com/spetzzz/] – Having lived in Indonesia for

10 years everything revolves around Alex's crazy adventurous lifestyle. From

watching at the Spanish GP on board a boat under the stars at 3am in Alor, East

Indonesia - to watching the Monaco GP from Komodo whilst hiking a mountain,

nothing stops Alex from watching his passion and supporting The McLaren F1

Team. VELO and Alex will reveal the extreme lengths he'll go to, to get his

motorsport fix and some of the weirdest places he's cheered on The McLaren F1

Team – from shark-infested waters to the edge of a volcano

To discover more about the fan stories head over to the Instagram pages of

VELO[https://www.instagram.com/velo.global/?hl=en] and The McLaren F1

Team.[https://www.instagram.com/mclaren/?hl=en]

Notes to Editors:

About BAT

BAT is a leading, multi-category consumer goods business with a purpose to

build A Better Tomorrow™ by reducing the health impact of its business through

offering a greater choice of enjoyable and less risky products for adult

consumers.

The company continues to be clear that combustible cigarettes pose serious

health risks, and the only way to avoid these risks is not to start or to quit.

BAT encourages those who would otherwise continue to smoke to switch completely

to scientifically-substantiated, reduced-risk alternatives*†. In order to

deliver this, BAT is transforming into a truly consumer-centric multi-category

consumer products business.

BAT's ambition is to have 50 million consumers of its non-combustible products

by 2030 and to generate £5billion of New Categories revenue by 2025. BAT has

set stretching ESG targets including achieving carbon neutrality for Scopes 1 &

2 by 2030 and eliminating unnecessary single-use plastic and making all plastic

packaging reusable, recyclable or compostable by 2025.

BAT employs over 52,000 people and operates in over 175 countries. The BAT

Group generated revenue of £12.87 billion in the first half of 2022 and profit

from operations of £3.68 billion.

The company's Strategic Portfolio is made up of its global cigarette brands and

a growing range of reduced-risk*† New Category tobacco and nicotine products

and traditional non-combustible tobacco products. These include vapour, tobacco

heating products, modern oral products including tobacco-free nicotine pouches,

as well as traditional oral products such as snus and moist snuff. In the first

half of 2022, we had 20.4 million consumers of our non-combustible products, a

rise of 2.1 million on full year 2021.

*Based on the weight of evidence and assuming a complete switch from cigarette

smoking. These products are not risk free and are addictive.

† Our products as sold in the US, including Vuse, Velo, Grizzly, Kodiak, and

Camel Snus, are subject to Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulation and no

reduced-risk claims will be made as to these products without FDA clearance.

About McLaren Racing

McLaren Racing was founded by New Zealand racing driver Bruce McLaren in 1963.

The team entered its first Formula 1 race in 1966, since then McLaren has won

20 Formula 1 world championships, more than 180 Formula 1 grands prix, the

Indianapolis 500 three times, and the Le Mans 24 Hours at its first attempt.

The team competes in the FIA Formula 1 World Championship with Lando Norris and

Daniel Ricciardo, the NTT INDYCAR Series with Arrow McLaren SP drivers Pato

O'Ward and Felix Rosenqvist, and the Extreme E Championship with Emma Gilmour

and Tanner Foust. McLaren will compete in Season Nine of the FIA Formula E

World Championship in 2022/23.

McLaren was the first F1 team to be awarded the Carbon Trust Standard in 2010

and has retained it since on a bi-annual basis, most recently in February 2021.

The team was also the first in F1 to be given the FIA Sustainability

Accreditation Award at a three-star level in 2013 as part of the FIA

Environmental Certification framework, before becoming a signatory to the UN

Sports for Climate Action Commitment in 2021.

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1890780/VELO.jpg

SOURCE: VELO