Renault and Alibaba's Tmall will partner for the 2018 World Championship season, with the logo of the Chinese B2C marketplace - the iconic Tmall Cat - being displayed prominently on the R.S. 18.

China, a strategic market for Groupe Renault, is the top priority in the company's new mid-term plan, "Drive the Future." The Chinese joint venture, Dongfeng Renault Automotive Company, has set a target of 400,000 passenger cars sales by 2022 based on nine local models.

"One of the key objectives of returning to Formula 1 was to leverage its global platform for Groupe Renault," said Cyril Abiteboul. "China has been identified as a market of strategic importance and partnering with high-profile companies like Alibaba's Tmall will provide opportunities to significantly improve Renault brand awareness and opinion in China, with a strong presence over the Chinese Grand Prix in April, but also throughout the year."

"We are excited to partner with the Renault Sport Formula One Team to make our activity around the Chinese Grand Prix a success and to be working closely together to bring one-of-a-kind experiences with the Renault Sport Formula One Team to our customers," added Wei Yu, General Manager of Tmall Auto."

Alibaba Group's mission is to make it easy to do business anywhere. The company aims to build the future infrastructure of commerce. It envisions that its customers will meet, work and live at Alibaba, and that it will be a company that lasts at least 102 years.

Launched in 2008, Tmall caters to consumers looking for branded products and a premium shopping experience. A large number of international and Chinese brands and retailers have established storefronts on Tmall. According to iResearch, Tmall was China's largest third-party platform for brands and retailers in terms of gross merchandise value in 2016. Tmall is a business of Alibaba Group.