Mercedes and Kingspan have jointly announced the termination of their controversial Formula 1 sponsorship deal with immediate effect after facing criticism over the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix weekend.
In the build-up to the inaugural Jeddah race, Mercedes revealed Kingspan as a new partner, with its company logo featuring on the W12, but soon came under fire for the deal.
Kingspan was involved in the Grenfell Tower tragedy that saw 72 people killed, with the firm’s insulation deemed a key factor in what caused the disaster.
A group of survivors and mournful family members wrote to Mercedes boss Toto Wolff to slam his team’s tie up with Kingspan.
Wolff also received a letter from UK government minister Michael Gove, who urged him to re-evaluate the deal and warned it could lead to a change in advertising rules for motorsport.
In light of the backlash, Mercedes released a statement on Wednesday announcing that the sponsorship deal had been ended by mutual consent.
“The Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 Team and Kingspan today announced that they have mutually agreed to end their partnership,” the statement reads.
“Announced last week, the new partnership included Kingspan chairing a new Sustainability Working Group for the team, and aimed to deliver carbon reductions through their leading-edge environmentally sustainable solutions for the team’s future campus.
“However, both parties have subsequently concluded that it is not appropriate for the partnership to move forward at the current point in time, notwithstanding its intended positive impact, and we have therefore agreed that it will be discontinued with immediate effect.”
Kingspan issued its own statement, saying it was “deeply aware of the sensitivities raised in recent days, and so we have jointly agreed that it’s not appropriate to move forward at the current point in time.”
The Grenfell United group also responded to the news, insisting Mercedes had “done the right thing by disassociating themselves from Kingspan.
It added: “With justice still so far away, it’s these small steps that encourage us to keep fighting.”
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