Force India has become the second Formula 1 team to sign up a flip-flop brand for the 2018 season following McLaren's deal with Gandys.
The Silverstone-based team announced on the Friday of the season-opening Australian Grand Prix that Havaianas – the world's largest manufacturer of flip-flops – will adorn its Halo at select races this year, starting this weekend.
"We are delighted to bring Havaianas into Formula 1," commented Force India chief operating officer Otmar Szafnauer. "Where better than the halo to carry the famous Havaianas logo?
"It’s a savvy move by this loved Brazilian brand, which will bring a touch of the beach to the paddock throughout the season.
"We have always been an adventurous team with our marketing efforts, and after introducing the pink livery in 2017 we hope this partnership will appeal to all fun-loving Formula 1 fans in 2018."
Alpargatas, which owns the Havaianas brand, said the move to sponsor an F1 team had been partly motivated by the various memes comparing the halo with a flip-flop's three-prong design.
"This is huge news for Havaianas," said Marcio Utsch, CEO of Alpargatas. "We want to bring our fun and cool vibe to Formula 1 and the opportunity presented by Force India really grabbed our attention.
"At Havaianas, we pride ourselves on listening to the fans of our brand and over the last few months we have seen more and more people associating our flips-flops with the new halo across social media.
"Together with Force India we have come up with an eye-catching design on the car’s halo, which was the logical place to locate our flip-flop strap.
"We are looking forward to engaging with Formula 1 fans at races around the world throughout the year, so stay tuned for some exciting developments."
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