Red Bull Racing cars to feature NFTs
The team's vehicles will sport an NFT on their livery in what is hailed as a first in F1 as the curtain call for the race in 2022 is slated for November 20
The Formula 1 world is still home to crypto and blockchain technology companies, with now an NFT leaving its stamp on the cars of Red Bull Racing.
Non-fungible token (NFT) is a unique digital token maintained on a blockchain and represents a work of art or another object whose history can be followed by the general public.
Max Verstappen finished first in the drivers' standings for a second straight season, and Red Bull Racing won the F1 season and the constructors' championship. In preparation for the final Formula 1 Grand Prix of the year in Abu Dhabi, Red Bull Racing's vehicles will sport an NFT avatar. Red Bull Racing, including its Principal Team Partner Bybit and Azuki's developer Chiru Labs, created F1 history by sponsoring and showcasing an NFT built on the Tezos Blockchain for the season-ending race in Abu Dhabi. A high-profile NFT participating or even appearing in a competitive race with such high stakes as Formula 1 has never before happened. Lei, the Lightning Azuki, is an NFT artwork, and a character from the anime-inspired Azuki collection will appear alongside the exchange's logo.
Christian Horner, team principal of Red Bulls Racing, highlighted the partnership's ongoing investigation of Web3 use cases in a statement, "In many ways, it's been an eye-opener for us to the vast opportunities Web3 offers. This unique project is the perfect combination of creativity, innovation, and passion, matching our ethos on the track."
One of the 10,000 original Lei Azuki NFTs is a part of this collection. Fans will have the chance to buy a limited-edition replica of Lightning Azuki, To commemorate the record-breaking season and one-of-a-kind event that the Teams experienced. 8,494 NFTs will be created on the Tezos blockchain and distributed for free on the Bybit NFT marketplace on a first-come, first-served basis.
With their primary sponsor OKX, McLaren has made history by becoming the very first team to go forward with a "livery takeover" this year. In October 2022, Formula 1 also submitted several trademark applications, which may indicate that the company wants to control intellectual property in the larger crypto market fully.
The writer is the founder at yMedia. He ventured into crypto in 2013 and is an ETH maximalist. Twitter: @bhardwajshash