Red Bull co-Founder Dietrich Mateschitz said that although the company “has achieved all its aims in F1” with Sebastian Vettel virtually assured of winning the F1 championship this year, it has “no plans to reverse out of the sport," according to Sylt & Reid of the London INDEPENDENT. That statement comes amid "recent reports its sister F1 team, Toro Rosso, would be sold this month to Abu Dhabi's International Petroleum Investment Company." Mateschitz said Toro Rosso is not for sale, "although partnerships would not be ruled out, as long as the partner is the right one." He added that he currently "would also not consider selling a stake in Red Bull Racing.” But Mateschitz said, "A forecast is difficult and a decision always depends on the wider picture, the politics, influence of F1 shareholders and many other factors." Mateschitz said that it is “hard to offset the team's costs by increasing sponsorship due to the prominence of Red Bull's logos.” Sylt & Reid note Red Bull Racing has 13 "on-car sponsors, including oil company Total and car brand Infiniti, but they provide only around” 24.5% of its US$218.9M revenue. The team lacks a title sponsor and Mateschitz said it is "difficult to find one due to the strength of the Red Bull brand." Mateschitz: "The return on investment is the marketing value, which depends on the race performance and results." Sylt & Reid note Red Bull has the “most visible logos on the livery of both of its teams, and the on-track success of Red Bull Racing has made it the most exposed brand in F1 for the past two years.” Meanwhile, Red Bull's NASCAR team “has struggled since joining the series in 2007 and in June it was reported that Red Bull will pull out at the end of this year.” Mateschitz said, "This decision is not yet final but we had numerous reasons to re-analyse our involvement." He also “dashes rumours that Red Bull will sponsor the United States Grand Prix when it returns to F1's calendar next year” (London INDEPENDENT, 9/29).
