Renault inks BP-Castrol deal for F1 2017

Renault Sport F1 has announced it will switch to BP and Castrol fuel and lubricants for the 2017 season, replacing Total.

The French firm has enjoyed a long and successful partnership with Total in recent years as engine supplier to the Red Bull Racing team, but following Renault's return to F1 as a fully-fledged manufacturer last year it will head into 2017 in association with BP - Castrol.

"The return of BP and Castrol, brands with such strong heritage in motorsport, is very good news and opens new opportunities for our Formula 1 team," said Renault Sport president Jerome Stoll. "BP's commitment highlights the ongoing appeal of Formula 1 to major multinational companies. We are very proud and motivated to have a technical partner and sponsor of this calibre.

Renault's decision to switch comes after Red Bull also opted to move away from Total in favour of a deal with to Mobil/Exxon, meaning the two teams will run the same engine with different products.

Indeed, with Renault managing director Cyril Abiteboul suggesting application of fuel and lubricants will become an even more important element to race performance in 2017, he is delighted to be reviving a Renault-BP partnership that was last seen in 1997.

"With the new aerodynamic regulations for the 2017 Formula 1 season, power sensitivity will increase. Therefore fuels and lubricants will make an even greater difference to the overall performance of the car than they have since the new power unit regulations have been introduced in 2014,"

"The teams at BP and Castrol are very excited by the challenges offered by Formula 1 and we are confident they will help us achieve our ambitions for our new car in 2017 and beyond."

Castrol-BP will also supply to the McLaren-Honda team in 2017 after losing its Exxon/Mobil1 deal to Red Bull.

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