Ferrari will not be running the Mission Winnow branding on their cars at the Australian Grand Prix next weekend.
The initiative, launched by the long-time partner of the Scuderia Philip Morris, was put under investigation by the country’s health ministry to determine whether it breached a law banning tobacco advertising.
Though nothing was officially confirmed, it was then noticed that Mission Winnow was missing from the Ferrari name on the entry list for the race in Melbourne, with one report even claiming the drivers will have to use last year’s overalls at Albert Park.
“Mission Winnow will remain the title sponsor of Scuderia Ferrari in 2019,” Philip Morris’ director of global communications Tommaso Di Giovanni told RaceFans.
“However, our activation will be different in Australia than in other countries and we will announce additional details in the lead up to the race in Melbourne.”
Di Giovanni also continued to plead the case that Mission Winnow, in fact, didn’t contravene any regulations.
“Although we acknowledge the position of the State of Victoria, we continue to believe that Mission Winnow complies with relevant laws related to our activities around the world,” he stated.
“Mission Winnow does not and will not advertise or promote any PMI-branded tobacco or e-cigarette products.”
It was also reassured the branding would return for the Bahrain Grand Prix on March 31.
