Formula 1: How World Cup Points Will Help People in The Gambia

The “snake pit Formula 1” is not necessarily known as a charity organization. And yet there are sometimes very humanistic approaches. Like now by the Mondsee company BWT, in whose area the new racing point racing car was presented for the season beginning on March 15 in Melbourne (read HERE >>>).

BWT founder and boss Andreas Weißenbacher not only relies on healthy, magnesium-containing water, but also on help for those who have hardly any access to pure water. And so his company will build a fountain in The Gambia for every point ranked by Sergio Perez (contract with Racing Point extended by three years) and Lance Stroll in the coming season.

But BWT will cost Formula 1 more than the Well Initiative in Africa. What became official only on the day of the team presentation in Mondsee did not come as a surprise to those responsible for the team and BWT (Best Water Technology): the previous main sponsor SportPesa is withdrawing – because the betting company lost its license in Kenya and other countries.

In the Racing Point budget for 2020 there was a gap of around 27 million euros – which the Austrian company will now fill in the new role of title sponsor. Incidentally, SportPesa also had to give up its partnership with Premier League team Everton.

Goal: Number 1 in midfield

“We are still in discussions about a reduced role with us,” said team boss Otmar Szafnauer about the SportPesa case. But nothing will happen anytime soon.

BWT boss Andreas Weißenbacher, who entered the DTM four years ago and later entered Formula 1, admitted: “Our investment in the team rose higher than the racing point budget as a percentage.” With this, the Austrians will probably pay in around 30 million euros, at least in the year before the name was changed to “Aston Martin F1 Team”. Both Szafnauer and Weißenbacher had known the end of the collaboration with SportPesa “for some time”.

BWT Racing Point can now concentrate on the big goal of the season: “To be the best in midfield”, as Szafnauer specified. The McLaren, AlphaTauri and Renault are expected as main opponents.

Swipe on Grosjean

–

To this end, the British have also properly upgraded with Canadian main investor Lawrence Stroll, father of driver Lance: from 400 in the previous year to currently 465 employees, who will be even more: “If all advertised jobs are filled, we will be 495”, confirms the team boss ,

In-house production of parts can be increased by ten percent. Szafnauer: “We have better resources in every respect: in infrastructure, in development, in production.” So optimism reigns in this team before the test starts on Wednesday at the Circuit de Catalunya.

Now only Perez and Stroll junior need to step on the gas. Szafnauer with humor: “We have the potential to bring both drivers to the points in every race.” Postscript: “If they survive the first lap. You don’t know what’s going to happen because Romain Grosjean (crash-prone pilot at Haas) is still driving F1.”

And if these points are successful, people in the Gambia will be happy.