The 2019 FIA Formula One World Championship fielded ten teams across 21 Grands Prix, running from 17 March to 1 December. The commercial landscape that year was shaped by new title backers arriving, long-standing allies departing, and three major agreements collapsing before or just after the final race. The most spectacular implosion belonged to Haas. Its title deal with British energy drink Rich Energy disintegrated in public on 10 July 2019, when the company declared on social media that it had torn up the contract. The logos were stripped from the Haas VF-19 ahead of the Italian Grand Prix in September, and the tie-up was formally unwound before the campaign closed.
SportPesa's single-year stint as title backer of Racing Point ended immediately after the season; the squad reappeared as BWT Racing Point for 2020. Williams Racing terminated its ROKiT arrangement in May 2020, meaning that deal, too, survived only one championship. Alfa Romeo's deeper integration with Sauber, which saw the team officially entered as Alfa Romeo Racing, proved more durable, lasting through the 2023 campaign before concluding.
Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport
Mercedes carried the same title and principal ally into 2019: Petronas. The arrangement, active since 2010 and reported to be worth tens of millions of dollars annually, covered livery, team apparel, and engineering collaboration on fuels and lubricants. Mercedes entered the year as defending constructors' champion, and Petronas's marks were a fixture on the dominant silver cars. No other significant commercial shifts touched the Mercedes roster in 2019.
Scuderia Ferrari Mission Winnow
Ferrari's primary backer for 2019 was Mission Winnow, a Philip Morris International initiative promoting the concept of harm reduction from smoking. The identity appeared on the car at most rounds but vanished at Grands Prix where local advertising rules restricted tobacco-adjacent imagery. Mission Winnow supplanted earlier Philip Morris livery arrangements that had funded the team for decades under the Marlboro banner. The annual value was substantial, though Philip Morris never disclosed a precise figure. The structure let the tobacco giant maintain a visible presence in Formula 1 while sidestepping direct cigarette advertising, which is banned across many host countries.
Aston Martin Red Bull Racing
Red Bull Racing opened 2019 with a new engine supplier, switching from Renault to Honda power units. The technical alliance also extended to Red Bull's junior squad, Toro Rosso. The title association with Aston Martin, launched in 2018 as a branding and engineering collaboration, continued unchanged. Red Bull's principal commercial relationships included the energy drink brand itself, which remained the team's owner and primary funding source. The multi-year Honda engine deal gave Red Bull a works-level tie, a clear upgrade from the customer-supplier dynamic it had endured with Renault.
McLaren F1 Team
McLaren's lead sponsor for 2019 was A Better Tomorrow, an initiative tied to British American Tobacco. This continued the pattern of tobacco companies using corporate social responsibility or reduced-harm messaging to stay visible in the paddock. McLaren had first aligned with BAT in 2017. The A Better Tomorrow identity sat prominently on the papaya MCL34. The team also maintained a technical supply arrangement with Renault for engines, having abandoned Honda after the 2017 season. McLaren finished the year fourth in the constructors' standings, its strongest result since 2014.
Renault F1 Team and Red Bull Toro Rosso Honda
Renault competed as a full works entry in 2019, running its own engines and carrying the Renault F1 Team identity. Major backers included BP and Castrol for fuel and lubricants, plus partner marks from Genii Capital and Bell & Ross. The team placed fifth in the constructors' championship.
Toro Rosso's Honda era begins
Toro Rosso, the Red Bull junior outfit, was officially entered as Red Bull Toro Rosso Honda, reflecting the new engine pact with Honda that it shared with the senior Red Bull squad. Its commercial roster drew heavily from the Red Bull ecosystem, with the energy drink brand itself front and centre. The team finished sixth in the constructors' standings.
SportPesa Racing Point F1 Team and Alfa Romeo Racing
The former Force India operation, rescued from administration in August 2018, raced in 2019 as SportPesa Racing Point. The Kenyan betting company held the title slot for that single campaign before the agreement lapsed. The squad rebranded as BWT Racing Point for 2020. Racing Point ran Mercedes power units and finished seventh in the constructors' championship.
Alfa Romeo deepens its Sauber ties
Alfa Romeo Racing was the new identity for the Sauber team, extending and deepening a relationship that had begun in 2018. The outfit used Ferrari engines and carried the Italian carmaker's marks prominently. Alfa Romeo's involvement persisted through the 2023 season before the team reverted to the Sauber name for 2024.
Haas F1 Team and ROKiT Williams Racing
Haas signed a title agreement with British energy drink company Rich Energy, announced in October 2018. The Rich Energy livery appeared on the VF-19 from pre-season testing in February 2019. The relationship imploded before the year was out. Rich Energy declared on social media on 10 July 2019 that it had terminated the contract, citing poor performance, though the move was legally contested. The logos were removed before the Italian Grand Prix in September, and the arrangement was formally dissolved.
Williams swaps Martini for a short-lived tech backer
Williams Racing ended its long-standing title alliance with Martini after the 2018 season, closing a relationship that had run since 2014. For 2019, Williams announced a multi-year title pact with mobile phone company ROKiT and a major sponsorship with beverage brand ROX. The ROKiT deal ended after the season; the team terminated the agreement in May 2020. Williams finished last in the constructors' championship for the second consecutive year.
