MARCH 1, 2001

Esso and Toyota

THE new Toyota Motorsport team will carry backing next year from the Esso oil brand. Toyota announced recently that it had agreed a deal with the giant Exxon Mobil for a partnership in Formula 1, a move which led to confusion as Mobil is a sponsor of McLaren. We understand that the McLaren-Mobil relationship will continue and that Toyota will run with Esso badging. This a major coup as Esso has not been seen in F1 since the mid-1970s. and in recent years has had a policy of being involved only in direct deals with manufacturers, notably with Peugeot in sportscars and the World Rally Championship.

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