Breaking news
Formula 1 Australian GP
Ferrari ditches Mission Winnow branding for Australia
Ferrari has revealed it has chosen to remove its ‘Mission Winnow’ branding for the opening round of the 2019 Formula 1 season in Australia.
Jamie Klein Franco Nugnes
Edited: Mar 5, 2019, 4:41 PM
Copy link
Share on Viber
It emerged last month that Australian authorities had launched an investigation into whether the initiative introduced by Ferrari title sponsor Philip Morris late last year contravened laws banning tobacco advertising.
It has been alleged that the Mission Winnow logos are overly similar to the Marlboro ones that were a mainstay of the Ferrari livery prior to 2008.
A Philip Morris representative was adamant that the branding “does not advertise or promote our company’s products” in a statement provided to Motorsport.com.
However, it has now been confirmed Ferrari intends to do away with its Mission Winnow branding for the Australian Grand Prix weekend on March 15-17 – meaning the logos will be removed from the SF90 car itself, the team’s garage panels and personnel uniforms.
Ferrari CEO Louis Camilleri confirmed the move at the Geneva Motor Show on Tuesday.
He said: "There were problems with the health department [in Australia] and there was no time for Philip Morris to find a solution.
"[Mission] Winnow is not a brand, it has nothing to do with tobacco, because it concerns the transition from tobacco to electronic [products].
"In any case, in Australia we will have a surprise for the fans on the car."
Sebastian Vettel, Ferrari SF90
Photo by: Stefano Arcari
The first hint at a looming change came when a revised F1 2019 entry list issued last week gave Ferrari’s team name simply as ‘Scuderia Ferrari’, and not ‘Scuderia Ferrari Mission Winnow’ as originally listed.
It then emerged that the Maranello squad planned to revert to its 2018 team uniforms for Australia, as the 2019 kit features prominent Mission Winnow branding.
Ferrari is expected to bring back the logos after Melbourne, but it has not specifically indicated this will be the case.
Ducati poised to keep branding for Qatar
The Ducati MotoGP team, which is likewise sponsored by Philip Morris and features Mission Winnow branding on its bikes, has also been dragged into the controversy.
A complaint about the Bologna-based outfit’s 2019 livery was lodged by the Italian National Consumer Union (UNC) to the country’s Competition Authority.
Massimiliano Dona, president of the UNC, said: "The fact that Ferrari has decided to call itself only Scuderia Ferrari and no longer Scuderia Ferrari Mission Winnow, coincidentally before the race in Australia, where the authorities are already investigating to ascertain whether there is a possible circumvention of the tobacco advertising ban, shows our petition has a solid grounding.
"For this reason, we ask that the authorities contacted by us to make a statement before Formula 1 or MotoGP arrives in Italy."
A Ducati spokesperson told Motorsport.com that the team has no plans to alter its livery for this weekend’s opening round of the season in Qatar.
The official team name of ‘Ducati Mission Winnow’ also appears to be unaffected.
Additional reporting by Roberto Chinchero, Sebastian Franzschky, Matteo Nugnes
Andrea Dovizioso, Ducati Team
Photo by: Gold and Goose / LAT Images
We want your opinion!
What would you like to see on Motorsport.com?
Take our 5 minute survey.
- The Motorsport.com Team
Read and post comments
Read also :
Share Or Save This Story
Copy link
Share on Viber
Previous article Mercedes' 2019 F1 car makes older one look "clunky, naive"
Next article Verstappen hadn't been so excited "in a long time"
Top Comments
There are no comments at the moment. Would you like to write one?
View More & Comment
More from
Jamie Klein
Super Formula Fuji: Ayumu Iwasa wins as Kakunoshin Ohta misses chance to seal title
Super Formula
Super Formula
Fuji II
Super Formula Fuji: Ayumu Iwasa wins as Kakunoshin Ohta misses chance to seal title
Super Formula Fuji: Igor Fraga wins while Kakunoshin Ohta closes on title
Super Formula
Super Formula
Fuji II
Super Formula Fuji: Igor Fraga wins while Kakunoshin Ohta closes on title
More from
Ferrari
The figures that show Mercedes has lost its supremacy in F1 2026
Formula 1
Formula 1
United States GP
7 h
The figures that show Mercedes has lost its supremacy in F1 2026
Ferrari promotes F2 racer to F1 reserve driver role
Formula 1
Formula 1
Singapore GP
Ferrari promotes F2 racer to F1 reserve driver role
Latest news
NASCAR explains why they penalized Zane Smith after latest clash with Carson Hocevar
NASCAR Cup
NAS NASCAR Cup
Phoenix II
2 h
NASCAR explains why they penalized Zane Smith after latest clash with Carson Hocevar
Porsche boss Laudenbach says he is "not happy" with how things were handled by IMSA in 2026
IMSA
IMSA IMSA 2 h
Porsche boss Laudenbach says he is "not happy" with how things were handled by IMSA in 2026
Five things to watch out for at the F1 United States GP
Formula 1
F1 Formula 1
United States GP
3 h
Five things to watch out for at the F1 United States GP
KTM sees MotoGP 2027 as a fresh start: “We never had the chance to build a new bike”
MotoGP
MGP MotoGP 4 h
KTM sees MotoGP 2027 as a fresh start: “We never had the chance to build a new bike”
Feature
Discover prime content
Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
You have 2 options:
- Become a subscriber.
- Disable your adblocker.
Subscribe now Already subscribed? Sign in here
Already disabled your adblocker?
Reload page
Manage Alerts
Subscribe