The newest baffling regulation change that the FIA have dreamt up is to ban helmet design changes throughout a season. It seems that Bernie and the FIA are fed up with the likes of Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel constantly changing their helmet design, and feel that a driver should stick with the same livery all season. The reason the FIA have given is “in order for drivers to be easily distinguished from one another whilst they are on the track, the crash helmet of each driver must be presented in substantially the same livery at every Event during a Championship season.” There is also a feeling that it will be better for marketing. In this piece, we shall look at these reasons, and answer if the new F1 helmet rule is really that baffling.
Ever since the origin of F1, drivers have worn protective headgear, known as helmets. Over the years, the design and safety of the F1 helmet has vastly improved, and from the late 50s and early 60s, the helmets started to include different liveries, representing each driver. Gradually, all of the drivers turned out with their own personalised helmet. Nowadays, each driver’s helmet has a different livery on it, which are full of sponsors to increase revenue. In the present day, some drivers do not stick to the same livery throughout the season, and change it on numerous weekends for different occasions. It differs from drivers changing it for just a race or two to highlight a career milestone, to the likes of Lewis and Sebastian, who change it for tributes to their favourite artist or for artistic reasons.
Do the fans not like these constant changes? It really depends on who you ask, but a good proportion of them don’t. I believe there’s two reasons for this. First is the visual perspective. The helmet livery helps fans figure out which driver is whom. It was much clearer to make out Fernando Alonso from Kimi Räikkönen when the Ferrari was in shot, as these drivers very rarely changed livery, and their helmet was instantly recognisable to the fans. If a driver is forever changing his design, then the fans will struggle to remember the driver’s helmet, and may get caught out and confused. The second reason I feel is a lot deeper. For many fans, a driver’s helmet represents their soul. It not only states who they are visually, but emotionally. I’m Scottish, and as a Scot, I belong to a clan, which goes by name and descent. Each clan has a livery, or tartan as we call it, and this for me is the same for drivers. Their helmet livery is like a clan’s tartan. It shows and represents who you are. The livery can also be iconic. When you see that gold and green stripped livery, who instantly think of Ayrton Senna.
And what marketing benefits is FIA on about? Last year, the drivers were made to pick and keep a car number that will follow them for the rest of their F1 career. It was planned as an easier way to distinguish drivers apart, just like what they claiming this regulation is about. It also helps market the sport better, like in NASCAR, so can F1 merchandise brand and sell stock with a driver’s number attached. Having a driver with numerous helmet designs would make it tougher to market a driver, unlike the single livery as sported by the likes of Senna, James Hunt, and all the other big stars of the sport. With the same car number, and keeping the same livery on their helmet, it will be easier to market the sport, as fans can identify better with their heroes, and can purchase merchandise.
So is this regulation really baffling? I would say yes AND no. It isn’t baffling, in one sense, because of the reasons already given in this article. The marketing side of the sport, and easier for fans to identify the drivers. It is baffling though, on the other hand, for two reasons. First of all, it is limited to just one livery design for a season. While most fans don’t want to see numerous livery changes, there is no concern for having them on special occasions, like a home race or a career milestone. Jenson Button had a special designed helmet in tribute for the 2011 Japanese Tsunami victims, and Vettel auctions off his various helmets for charity. The new ruling would stop any of this, and that doesn’t make F1 look good. A rule of limiting helmet change to three would make more sense, as it would stop too many livery changes to annoy the fans, but allow enough so that tributes or celebration can be decorated.
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