Formula 1: 3 offseason stories that repeated from last year
By Asher Fair
Formula 1 offseason storylines: No. 3 – Rich Energy returning?
Speaking of being sacked by Haas, we have former Haas title sponsor Rich Energy and their famous CEO, William Storey.
Last offseason, Storey publicized a return for the British beverage company, which cut ties with Haas during the 2019 season, their first and only (partial) season together, after a bizarre and somewhat comical sequence of events played out that summer.
Storey released multiple videos about the “renaissance” of the brand, and he called the return “the greatest comeback since Lazarus”, among other things that made fans chuckle.
No actual details were revealed, and then the narrative changed. With a 2021 return clearly not happening, Storey then began promoting a 2022 return, and those talks heated up as the 2021 season wound down. He stated that he couldn’t wait to reveal the team with which his brand had partnered for 2022.
He then launched the “Rich Energy F1 Fanzone” in December, though nobody is really sure what, exactly, this is, even to this day.
Once again, no details were revealed about the alleged return. When Rich Energy were expectedly absent at preseason testing, Storey, who would go on to tout the company as a “billion dollar brand”, stated that the other Formula 1 teams had prevented him from making the move and that it was now a matter for legal experts.
But when Uralkali and Nikita Mazepin were sacked by Haas, he shared a Rich Energy Haas 2022 car design on Twitter and said “Tick tock”, indicating that a return was still on.
As we all expected, however, just like last year, nothing ended up coming of it, and Rich Energy are still not in Formula 1.
And here’s a way-too-early prediction for next offseason: this will be a “storyline” for a third time as well.
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The 2022 Formula 1 season is scheduled to get underway later today with the Bahrain Grand Prix at Bahrain International Circuit. The race is set to be broadcast live on ESPN at 11:00 a.m. ET, so if you have not yet begun your free trial of FuboTV, do so today!