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Uber × Colapinto: winning the sponsorship with zero budget left to amplify
The challenge
Uber backed Franco Colapinto in his breakout into Formula 1. The deal ate most of the year's budget — nothing left for paid campaigns. So the conversation had to do the work. We tracked Uber against Colapinto's 5 other sponsors in parallel, race by race (6 races, Austin to Abu Dhabi), reading what was landing — and which traps to dodge — before the next green light.
The result
+405%
change in mentions after adjusting the focus between races (Las Vegas → Qatar).
Las VegasBaseline · Nov 21–25
34%share vs. sponsors
43%positive sentiment
267Uber + Colapinto mentions
109Kengagement
#1 in mentions thanks to the creative, but within a generally low-conversation context.
QatarAfter · Nov 28–Dec 2
49%share vs. sponsors
71%positive sentiment
1,349Uber + Colapinto mentions
+405%change vs. previous race
After adjusting the focus (giveaway + sustaining the voice in the app), a clear leader with record positive sentiment.
The decision
Shift the play between races: lead with Colapinto's voice in the app and a participatory activation (a giveaway to meet the driver). Uber roughly doubled its share of voice and tripled positive sentiment on zero paid spend — a call made mid-season, not in a post-mortem.
The proof
“An extremely high-impact collaboration. The reports were clear and deep, the deliverables exceeded expectations, and we managed to represent the return on investment.”
Mariana Muntz
Head of Marketing South Cone, CAM & Caribbean · Uber
The campaign, in real pieces
