McLaren reportedly explored a potential sponsorship with links to Colonel Gaddafi’s controversial Libyan regime.<\/p>\n
Britain’s Daily Mail reports that the Woking based team even produced an electronic mock-up of a livery on its formula one car featuring the slogan ‘Visit Libya’.<\/p>\n
McLaren’s dealings were with Gaddafi’s son Saif, representing the state-owned tourism board.\u00a0 Saif was even invited to the famous British team’s factory.<\/p>\n
The newspaper said the story was developing early last year until “Saif dropped his interest”.<\/p>\n
McLaren is already part-owned by the Bahrain state-owned Mumtalakat company.<\/p>\n
“Libya’s backing would have increased McLaren’s connections to embattled rulers in the Arab world”, said the Daily Mail.<\/p>\n
A McLaren spokesman confirmed the team met with a representative of a Libyan consortium in January last year “with a view to discussing a commercial sponsorship”.<\/p>\n
He insisted however that “no meetings between any personnel from McLaren and any personnel from the consortium from Libya ever took place and the deal therefore never reached square one”.<\/p>\n
Also last year, it was reported that Gaddafi’s son was one of the potential backers of Jacques Villeneuve’s bid to return to F1 with Durango.<\/p>\n
And in 2004, Gaddafi sent his deputy prime minister to the Bahrain grand prix, with reports then claiming F1 “might one day race” in Libya.<\/p>\n
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