Much has been said about the arrival of Sergio Perez at McLaren. The young Mexican impressed during his time at Sauber, prompting a move to McLaren to replace the outgoing Lewis Hamilton.
Some claim the move was the fruit of his talent, others claim it provided a link financial between McLaren and billionaire Carlos Slim – who has backed Perez as he tried to break into Formula One and during his time with Sauber through various team sponsors.
Whilst it’s likely a mix of both, the McLaren MP4-28 didn’t include a single Mexican sponsor when it was revealed at the start of the year. That changed in Spain, when it received backing from Claro – a Mexican telecom company owned by Slim. It also sponsors Sauber.
The branding could be seen on the rear-wing and is set to stay in place for several races.
It’s also reported that more Slim-owned sponsors will join the team next season, prompting speculation that one of the 73-year-old’s companies will take over Vodafone’s title sponsorship. However that is yet to be confirmed, with some reporting that GlaxoSmithKline is a more likely replacement.
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