Wieden+Kennedy is making its ad debut for Formula 1, now owned by Liberty Media, with this number purporting to show that F1 is, indeed, exciting. Not just Lewis Hamilton buffing his nails miles in front if he survives the usual shenanigans at the first corner.
So we have crashes and punch-ups in the paddock, calculated for the theme ‘Engineered Insanity’ as viewed by the fans. Far removed from its stately days under English gents Bernie Ecclestone and Max Mosley (when most of the skullduggery took place off the track). FI wants to appeal to a bigger, non-petrolhead audience.
Formula 1 director of marketing Ellie Norman says: “We want to create a perceptible shift in how people perceive F1. This campaign switches the focus away from our own echo chamber, instead spotlighting why our fans love this sport. Our brief to Wieden+Kennedy London was to translate its raw, exhilarating thrill into something that will transcend its appeal across the entire spectrum of sports fans.
“Last season, we made a promise to our fans to bring them closer and to reshape the sport into something that resembles what they want to see, the gladiatorial conflict at its heart. Nothing we came up with creatively delivered this better than seeing it through the eyes of our most passionate fans.”
But what to do about Hamilton in his Mercedes? Anyone have a still functioning Austin Allegro to hand?
MAA creative scale: 7.
