FTX’s Mercedes F1 Ethereum NFTs Come With a Piece of the Actual Car

Formula One’s inaugural Miami Grand Prix is set to take place next weekend, and given Miami’s rising crypto city status, it’s no surprise to hear that NFTs will be involved. In this case, the offering isn’t entirely digital—some NFTs come with a piece of a real F1 car too.

Today, cryptocurrency exchange FTX and F1 team Mercedes-AMG Petronas announced that they will release an array of NFT collectibles, both around the Miami Grand Prix and other races for the rest of the 2022 season. FTX and Mercedes-AMG Petronas initially revealed a long-term alliance last September.

FTX will launch 1,000 “free-to-claim” limited edition NFT ticket stubs for the Miami Grand Prix and at other races this season, each of which will be minted on Solana and released via the FTX NFTs marketplace.

Some other races this season will offer as many as 2,500 free NFT ticket stub collectibles. Each race’s free NFT stub will have a unique design, and FTX is exploring ways to add potential utility to the NFTs to benefit holders.

For the Miami event, FTX and Mercedes-AMG Petronas have also teamed up with noted artist Mad Dog Jones to release 10 limited edition pieces of Ethereum NFT artwork that will be auctioned.

Two of those single-edition artwork NFTs will be bundled with the physical rear wing end plate from the race taken from Mercedes’ cars, driven by Lewis Hamilton and George Russell, respectively. In fact, each rear wing will feature the paired Mad Dog Jones artwork, which will be visible on the track.

“We really wanted to do it big in Miami, and really fuse together art, culture, and Formula One,” FTX’s VP of Partnerships Lou Frangella told Decrypt.

Mercedes-AMG Petronas’ proceeds from the sale will benefit Ignite, a charitable initiative that the team co-founded with Hamilton’s Mission44 foundation to promote diversity in motorsport.

An NFT proves ownership for a digital item, and can represent things like illustrations, profile pictures, sports collectibles, and more. The wider NFT market ballooned to $25 billion worth of trading volume in 2021, according to data from DappRadar.

FTX will open up bidding on the auctions starting on May 6, the day that practice starts for the Miami Grand Prix, and will let them run through May 13. The firm will also host a physical NFT gallery at the event so that attendees can view the artwork in person—perhaps after catching it zipping by on the track.

“I think it's really going to open everyone's eyes when you see this design on the car, on the track. People are going to turn their heads, like, ‘What is that?’” said Avi Dabir, FTX’s VP of business development. “We liked that eye-catching element to this partnership, and the fact that Mercedes is going to be bold here with us.”