A tie-up between Nissan luxury brand Infiniti and Red Bull Racing looks set to be announced in Geneva on Tuesday, although the details of exactly what it involves are not yet clear.
A few days ago F1 journalists were invited by a top F1 PR firm to a press briefing in London this morning with the following teaser: “A major luxury global automotive brand is entering into a marketing and technical agreement with a world championship-winning Formula One team.”
Details revealed at that event were to be kept under embargo until midnight today. However, the story emerged on the internet yesterday, including on the BBC website, where it was claimed that the team’s engines would be free and badged as Infinitis.
Intriguingly, that evoked an immediate and angry Twitter response from the PR man who had issued the invitations, and who wrote to the BBC’s F1 man thus: “Your Infiniti story has a few holes in it. Don’t you think it might have been worth checking with the people who know first?,” and “Don’t believe everything you read on the BBC. Pity they can’t get it right occasionally.”
Meanwhile there’s an apparently updated version of the RB7 press pack floating around the net listing Infiniti first in a list of team partners, described thus: “Infiniti, the luxury automotive brand from Japan, reflects its brand promise ‘Inspired Performance’ with its technology performance orientated model line-up, coupled with superior craftsmanship and bespoke customer service experience.” References to the Renault engine appear unchanged.
Founded in the USA in 1989, Infiniti’s aim is to be regarded as the Japanese BMW. Carlos Ghosn is behind its current push into Europe.
Adam Cooper's F1 Blog 
If by yesterday you mean 6 weeks ago then yeah, the story first emerged yesterday.
Try reading English – it says emerged, not first emerged. And I’m talking in relation to journalists having been invited to the event(ie the BBC) and the fact that there is an embargo.
What exactly is embargo? Only journalists invited to that event had to promise something, right?
Yeah exactly, but only they will have had any official information in advance.
Adam, check this revised Haynes Manual RB7 right now.
What a idiot PR man!
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If any brand needed an intravenous shot of Red Bull it is Infinity. Could there be two more opposite brand images than these two? Red Bull has presented itself as young, edgy, fun and adventurous. Infinity despite itself is comes across as a safe middle aged step into an unostentatious luxury car that is really a Nissan in disguise–more of a Japanese Oldsmobile than a BMW. I wonder what Renault thinks of having its brand alongside of Infinity?
Very good point. Red Bull has always been so careful in terms of the sort of companies with which it forms alliances, so it does seem a little like the Odd Couple.
I’d forgotten that Carlos Ghosn is the CEO and President of Renault of France and Nissan, so there would be no objection from Renault per se.
I don’t know about the situation in Europe, but in the US Infiniti is probably the second sportiest premium brand behind BMW. I think it makes sense.
The way things have played out with the Renault being portrayed as underpowered, I wonder if RBR would have been better off with the Ferrari deal they had.
Less power but more driveability, couple and less consumption. The power is a thing, but not the only thing !