The F1 world is not one without collaborations and sponsorships; from Disney performances to custom-made liveries, fans are well-versed to the sport’s dependency on advertisement. And, in an F1-first, the sport will see one of its most-beloved British teams go toe-to-toe with Doctor Doom himself.
In partnership with Marvel, Atlassian Williams F1 Team will be starring in a comic book called Iron Man Racing Towards Doom. Key member James Vowels, Team Principal for Williams, and teammates Carlos Sainz and Alex Albon will be fighting for victory – and this time, they won’t be fighting just 22 other drivers; Doctor Doom is preparing to send his own team to victory, eliminating anyone who gets in his way. In their most exciting championship fight yet, Williams get help from key Avengers members like Iron Man and Black Widow, to prevent Doom from taking the title for himself.
Although the one-shot comic is available for pre-order now, the book will hit US shelves in October. However, the comic will undergo several transformations as the racing calendar spins by; special edition variant covers of the book will be available at several other Grand Prix, including the Monaco Grand Prix in June.
Director of Merchandise and Licensing for Williams, Luke Timmins, had this to say about the comic:
“Alex and Carlos are already heroes to our millions of fans, and now they get to prove it in print by uniting with the Marvel Super Heroes to save racing from Doctor Doom. We are proud to be bringing these two universes together for the first time, and hope it gives fans another way to find and fall in love with our iconic Atlassian Williams F1 Team. There is no better place than Miami to launch a unique collaboration like this, and with special edition covers for races around the world the story is only just beginning.”
Although the team will be facing ‘grave danger’ in their new, dazzling feature, Williams can’t be more excited for its release. At this weekend’s Miami Grand Prix, those lucky enough to enter Williams’ fan zone will be treated to a Marvel celebration, where they can pre-order the book.
Whilst the F1 title fight is only starting to heat up, it is clear that Williams are not just aiming to dominate on track – but across multiverses. With F1 welcoming this groundbreaking collaboration, we can only hope that more dynamic sponsorships like these will take place.
