Name tweak for Mercedes

In a tweak to their current name, the Silver Arrows will be racing under the full title of 'Mercedes AMG Petronas Formula One Team' from next season.

AMG is the 'high performance' brand of Mercedes-Benz so the tweak just gives some added exposure to this part of their business.

For anyone who follows DTM [German Touring Cars], Mercedes and AMG is the most successful brand in the history of that form of motorsport, winning 165 races since 1988 and has won a total of 32 driver, manufacturer and team titles, so it does at least hold some solid ties to motorsport, but of course the main benefit of the tweak is for global marketing purposes.

'Our new team name fuses the proud traditions of AMG and the Mercedes-Benz Silver Arrows at the pinnacle of motorsport, These three letters are synonymous with high technology, sporting performance and excitement and this step is a further strong sign of the strategic commitment Mercedes-Benz has made to Formula One.” Norbert Haug, Vice-President of Mercedes-Benz Motorsport told “formula1.com.

Mercedes team principal Ross Brawn added: “'We are very proud to reveal our new team name today, It adds another strong performance element to our team's identity and, by virtue of being shared between Brackley and Brixworth, will forge even stronger links within our team. At the factory, we have been focused for some time on the challenge of 2012, and our very clear ambition to move forward up the grid next year.

The team have also confirmed that their 2012 car will miss the first winter test of 2012 and instead will make its debut at the Barcelona, test session on February 21.