Formula 1: Rich Energy sort of announced their F1 return

Rich Energy took to Twitter on Sunday to make an announcement about their future in Formula 1, but it left fans with more questions than answers.

For the last several weeks, former Haas Formula 1 team title sponsor Rich Energy have been saying that they will be returning to Formula 1 ahead of the 2021 season in what company co-founder and CEO William Storey has referred to as the “greatest comeback since Lazarus”.

The brand left Formula 1 well before the 2019 season ended as a result of a bizarre sequence of events that happened that summer.

That sequence of events involved legal controversies and much, much more, from fake announcements to Twitter memes — leaving many fans thoroughly entertained, albeit not necessarily wanting more.

Storey, who posted a video last month confirming a return, has noted that the doubters would be shocked when they find out the details of the British energy drink company’s return, with anticipation building for an official announcement.

Rich Energy had said that an official announcement would be made in the first week of February.

That didn’t happen. In the first week of February, they said that an official announcement would be made in the second week in February.

They later confirmed that it would be made on 2:00 p.m. GMT (9:00 a.m. ET) on Sunday, February 14, and they backed that up with another post on Sunday morning.

Like many fans expected, once 2:00 p.m. GMT (9:00 a.m. ET) on Sunday, February 14 rolled around, there was yet another delay, this time pushing the news back by an hour.

When 3:00 p.m. GMT (10:00 a.m. ET) rolled around, nothing had been shared, which only added to the skepticism shared by many fans and media members alike about the whole thing.

However, 3:20 p.m. GMT (10:20 a.m. ET) and 3:36 p.m. GMT (10:36 a.m. ET) were the big moments, as Rich Energy released two short videos, much like the one from last month, featuring Storey discussing the brand’s future at the pinnacle of motorsport.

Take a look below.

More from Formula One

• Formula 1: Top Red Bull threat identified for 2024
• Formula 1: Why the Max Verstappen retirement obsession?
• Formula 1: Williams ‘mistake’ hints Logan Sargeant’s future
• Formula 1 awaiting key confirmation for 2024 season
• Formula 1: The ‘championship’ Max Verstappen only leads by 3 points

The 42-year-old British businessman, who also serves as the CEO of Wolf Data Systems and the managing director of Wolf Jerky, went into more detail than he did last month, noting that Rich Energy had explored entering their own Formula 1 team for the 2022 season with the new rules and regulations slated to take effect.

But he added that a friend had agreed on a deal to take a majority stake in an existing team, with Rich Energy slated to become a partner for the 2021 season. Once the acquisition is announced, they are supposedly slated to become the title sponsor for the 2022 season.

However, much of what he said otherwise had already been stated, and unsurprisingly, it left fans with far more questions than answers.

Aside from the idea that Rich Energy plan to be back in Formula 1, there is still nothing confirmed regarding the team with which they have supposedly partnered — or when the acquisition will actually be announced.

https://twitter.com/jamesthomasf1/status/1360973341469851648

So it looks like we have to keep waiting.

The 2021 season is scheduled to get underway in about a month and a half on Sunday, March 28 at Bahrain International Circuit with the Bahrain Grand Prix. Bahrain International Circuit is also scheduled to host preseason testing from Friday, March 12 to Sunday, March 14.