DHL and Formula 1® renew their multi-year partnership ahead of the start of the new racing season

• With 23 races, the new season includes largest race calendar in Formula 1®
  history
• Three “triple headers” poses new complexity for logistics
• Season opens March 28 in Bahrain
• DHL Fastest Lap Award and
  DHL Fastest Pit Stop Award to continue

 

SINGAPORE – Media
OutReach – 16 March 2021 – With the FIA Formula 1 World Championship^TM
about to begin, DHL and
Formula 1® are proud to announce the extension of their long standing global
partnership, which spans across a number of decades. DHL thus remains the
Official Logistics Partner of Formula 1® for further years and will continue to
be responsible for shipping world-class motorsport around the world. 2021 sees
23 destinations on the Formula 1® racing calendar, the largest number in the
sport’s history, with DHL transporting race cars, fuel and oil, equipment for
the racing teams and transmission technology. DHL has been official logistics
partner since 2004, winning each “races between the races” at every Grand Prix
around the world.

 

“We are
proud to continue our unique partnership for the years to come,” says
Arjan Sissing, Global Head of Brand Marketing at DHL. “Formula 1 has been
delivering the ultimate in speed, precision and technology to its fans for over
1000 races and it is DHL who delivers Formula 1 across the globe. For more than
four decades, our common values connect us with each other and made it possible
to win any logistics races around the world, before the first tires touch the
track. We are looking forward to defend our title in each of these races between
the races.”

 

The
transport volume of up to 1,400 tons have to be transported from one venue to
the next within the shortest possible time and with great reliability. That’s
why DHL employs a team of motorsports logistics specialists who work closely
with Formula 1® management and the racing teams. Just like on the race track,
it’s all about speed, precision and cutting-edge technology.

 

Stefano
Domenicali, President and CEO, Formula 1®, added: “DHL
is our longest standing global partner and we are delighted to have signed a
partnership extension that demonstrates our strong and collaborative
relationship. For the past 16 years we have delivered on and off the track
together. We are proud to be working with the world’s leading logistics
provider as we look ahead to the biggest season ever for Formula 1”.

 

The 2021 FIA
Formula 1 World Championship™ begins
March 28, with the Formula 1 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix 2021 and closes
December 12 with the Formula 1 Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix 2021. The
2021 race calendar takes in 23 races on five continents and is thus more action-packed
than ever. This year, drivers, teams and DHL’s logistics crew all face the
special challenge of three triple headers, where three races are held over
three consecutive weekends.

 

In the first
triple header, the action takes place in Europe. The Formula 1 Rolex Belgian
Grand Prix 2021 in Spa-Francorchamps on August 29 will be followed by the Formula
1 Heineken Dutch Grand Prix in Zandvoort on September 5. A week later, the Formula
1 Heineken Gran Premio D’Italia 2021 will be held in Monza on September 12.

 

The second
triple header is logistically even more challenging because significantly
greater distances have to be covered. A week after the Formula 1 VTB Russian
Grand Prix 2021 in Sochi on September 26, it’s off to the Singapore street circuit
on October 3. And then on October 10, the Formula 1® circus travels to Suzuka
in Japan.

 

There’s also
quite a distance to cover in the season’s third triple header. The first stop
is the Formula 1 Aramco United States Grand Prix 2021 in Austin, Texas, on
October 24. From there, racing continues in Mexico City, with the Formula 1
Gran Premio De La Cuidad de Mexico 2021 on October 31. The triple header
finishes on November 7 in São Paulo, Brazil.

 

“An
intercontinental triple header is where logistics is really put to the test,”
says Paul Fowler, Global Motorsport Head, DHL Global Forwarding. “Even during the race, before the
checkered flag is waved, the DHL team start dismantling and stowing equipment.”
And for the logistics experts, the job becomes especially difficult when parts
have to be flown out and back in again during the three-week triple header
timeframe – such as for testing in special laboratories located all around the
world.

 

New events
like the Formula 1 Heineken Dutch Grand Prix 2021 in Zandvoort, which is back
on the Formula 1® schedule, and the Formula 1 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix 2021,
which this year will be held on a new street circuit in Jeddah, also test the
logistics specialists. This is why scouts explore the new routes to ensure
that, despite unfamiliar surroundings, things run smoothly and everything fits
into place. For Paul Fowler, it’s challenges like these that make motorsport so
appealing: “Behind the scenes, we give our all to ensure that the teams and
drivers can perform at their best, and that racing fans everywhere get to see
the sport they love.”

 

With the
extended partnership, DHL will again be offering two awards: The DHL Fastest
Lap Award and the DHL Fastest Pit Stop Award for special achievements by
drivers and teams. This year’s awards will be presented to the winners in Abu
Dhabi on the final day of the racing season.