Image Credit: AFP via Getty Images
To celebrate the release of the Deadpool & Wolverine film, the Formula One Alpine team will be sporting a special livery on its F1 cars at the Belgian Grand Prix.
Instead of their usual design—normally a black car featuring shades of blue and pink—Pierre Gasly, 28, and Esteban Ocon, 27, will be driving cars adorned in red and black, complete with yellow claw marks, in a nod to the two Marvel superheroes depicted in the new movie.
The two drivers will also lean into the occasion—Ocon will wear a Deadpool-themed helmet, while Gasly will sport a Wolverine design.
BWT Alpine F1 Team 🤝 Deadpool & Wolverine
Introducing our exclusive livery for the #BelgianGP pic.twitter.com/3GDJvrIPXT
— BWT Alpine F1 Team (@AlpineF1Team) July 24, 2024
Alpine, with its one-off color scheme, is the latest team to secure a movie deal, but their Marvel Studios tie-up is no accident. Ryan Reynolds, who plays the masked Deadpool character, has heavily invested in the team.
Reynolds came on board in June 2023 when Renault sold 24% of its shares to the US-based investment group Otro Capital, which includes RedBird Capital Partners and Maximum Effort Investments, with the latter led by Reynolds and fellow Wrexham owner Rob McElhenney.
Esteban Ocon will be driving in a Deadpool helmet in Las Vegas ⚔
Ryan Reynolds became an investor in Alpine earlier this year 🤝 pic.twitter.com/2H7M6EeNkF
— ESPN F1 (@ESPNF1) November 15, 2023
According to the F1 site, Reynolds “was part of a group of investors who were behind a €200m cash injection in Alpine last year, to further the team’s ambitions in Formula 1.”
The 47-year-old ventured into Formula 1, and some of the world’s biggest athletes have since joined him at Alpine. The group includes Michael B. Jordan and high-profile athletes like boxer Anthony Joshua, Liverpool footballer Trent Alexander-Arnold, golfer Rory McIlroy, NFL star Travis Kelce, and quarterback Patrick Mahomes, who has since been regularly spotted in the F1 paddock as an Alpine guest.
Daisy Edgar-Jones, Daniel Ricciardo e Yuki Tsunoda al Gran Prix Britannico di F1. pic.twitter.com/PJUAx2QAqM
— Rebelle Vague (@rebellevague) July 5, 2024
Alpine is the second team this month to announce a Hollywood crossover, with RB landing a deal with Warner Bros. Pictures to promote summer blockbuster Twisters at the British Grand Prix.
Daniel Ricciardo and Yuki Tsunoda sported Twisters branding on their cars and overalls in Silverstone, and the film’s stars Daisy Edgar-Jones, Glen Powell, and Anthony Ramos attended the race as guests.
“We are the team with the youngest and the most balanced fan base between male and female, and it’s the perfect target audience for the movie as well. Daniel and Yuki are popular drivers,” RB CEO Peter Bayer said about the Twisters collaboration.
“With this deal, everything had to happen very quickly, and it’s a great fit for both the movie and the team.”
