Lids On, Lights Out and Away We Go!

In typical Las Vegas fashion, the Formula 1 drivers have gone all out on their helmet designs for the upcoming weekend’s race. Before the drivers take a tour around Sin City, let’s look through the lids that are going to be on display!

Lando Norris

Taking inspiration from Greek Mythology, Lando chose to incorporate the snakes of Medusa wrapped around a sandy base. If unaware, Medusa’s power was to freeze any onlooker in fear perhaps suggesting that Lando would be hoping to instil this fear into his opponents whilst speeding past the infamous Mirage. This design also gives homage to the dangers of the desert drivers can expect to be surrounded by. The snakes raise the question of whether Lando is a fellow Swiftie who can’t wait for the re-release of Taylors version of Reputation! Contrasting Norris’ innocent and charming persona, the snakes designed in collaboration with art collective MSCHF, look extremely menacing perhaps foreshadowing Lando’s upcoming performance on Saturday night!

Oscar Piastri

Despite this being his rookie season, the track in Las Vegas would be one of the few where Oscar wouldn’t be at a disadvantage with this being a brand new circuit for everyone. The helmet itself illustrates the vision you would see speeding through a tunnel, through the use of thin strips of colour all over a black ‘dark mode’ base. Piastri chose to use this race to showcase his partnership with Google Chrome by displaying the logo on either side of his lid, though unfortunately, this took away from the overall design. Much like his teammate, Piastri, seems to be foreshadowing the speed of which he will be traveling down the strip of Las Vegas.

Charles Leclerc

Sticking with the red and white theme of Ferrari, Leclerc covered his helmet in these colours whilst incorporating the Vegas theme with dice, chips and the ‘Welcome to Las Vegas’ sign displayed across the lid. Leclerc also paid homage to the country they will be racing in by plastering the star spangled banner across the back of his helmet. The question is will he paint the town red this weekend?

Carlos Sainz

The red hot chili has also shown up to Vegas all in red for this weekends race. The Ferrari driver has gone for a detailed look using his name, dice and a theatrical sign announcing the event to decorate his helmet. Carlos has incorporated elements of himself including his nickname ‘Chili’ and 55 in the slot machine. The use of shimmering stars displayed throughout the helmet could be giving us a hint to his hopes to dazzle the onlookers this weekend!

George Russell

Unlike the other drivers, George has opted for a minimalistic design just adding sparkles to his original light blue helmet. The lid also features his signature number 63 along with his name.

Alex Albon

Using the impressive skills of helmet designer Massimo Dante, Albon’s Las Vegas inspired design was bought to life through colourful illustrations of Vegas making it one that is hard to miss. Albon’s helmet has hand painted palm trees, desert and blue skies along with the ‘Welcome to Las Vegas’ sign scattered across the top. The unique design celebrates F1s return to the entertainment capital of the world and embodies his colourful personality.

Max Verstappen

The current World Champion of the 2023 Drivers Championship opted to take inspiration from the Casino and gambling culture of Sin City. Using the vibrant colour of neon yellow paired with black and white, Max has capitalised on the neon capital of the world’s love of colour whilst using reflective diamond style squares as a base. The helmet also hosts a casino chip on the back which details his World Title wins along with his logo, fully immersing the elements of Las Vegas onto his lid. The combination of bright colours and bold designs make Max’s helmet another that is hard to miss.

Sergio Perez

Sergio Perez also opted to take inspiration from the casino elements of Las Vegas. The Mexican driver went with the red and white colour scheme covering the helmet in cards, roulette wheels and topped off with the ‘lucky’ number 11. Will luck be his lady this weekend?!

Esteban Ocon

The one word to describe Esteban Ocon’s Las Vegas helmet would be…Deadpool. We’re not kidding you, it is literally the face of Deadpool. Having previously been Spiderman in the Texas Grand Prix, Ocon continued the theme by becoming Ryan Reynolds, needy, neurotic, super anti-hero, Deadpool. During the announcement of the design on Esteban’s Instagram, the Canadian actor was highly impressed by the intricate design, and gave in exchange for it, in true Reynolds fashion, a bracelet made by his daughter labelled ‘Daddy’. Could Esteban become the super villain of the track?!

Yuki Tsunoda

Yuki used his signature Japanese Orphan leaf within his design for this race’s helmet. The leaves were printed in a red metallic colour layered on top of a white base incorporating his country colours. His minimalistic design did however include the ‘Welcome to Vegas’ sign on the back as well as his name. The final addition to his lid was the Alpha Tauri logo on either side of his head.

Fernando Alonso

Aston Martin’s Alonso has also taken inspiration from the casino culture in Las Vegas by covering his helmet with dice, chips and cards. He has the famous ‘Welcome to Las Vegas’ sign plastered across the base surrounded by metallic blocks of colour. To make the helmet even more personal, Fernando has personalised joker cards with his face and name on the back. Manufactured by Bell racing Helmets, Alonso’s lid showcases the magic of Vegas!  

Kevin Magnussen

Magnussen decided to opt for a street art graffiti style helmet with the words ‘Las Vegas’ and ‘Sin City’ plastered on either side. The base is made up of his name along with small depictions of the city they will be racing through. Kevin also has the ‘Welcome to Las Vegas’ sign along with his number on the top of his head. Finally he has incorporated the casino culture by having a chip centred with his logo on the side of his helmet.

Valtteri Bottas

Opting for a completely unique look, Bottas modelled his design around space and ‘Planet Vegas’. The Finnish racer chose this theme because he felt Vegas is like no other and is its own planet. The base of the helmet is made up of a blue starry night design with a rocket man shooting across the side and the words Planet Vegas in glitter. Designed by Tiffany, the helmet was topped off with a view of the Vegas skyline on the back. Will his upcoming weekend performance too be out of this world?!

Lance Stroll

Looking very similar to his previous helmets, Lance has added a neon element to this weekend’s race helmet. He combines green neon wings that represent the Aston martin logo with his signature Canadian maple leaf also in neon green. Overall, Lance has chosen a minimalistic vibe for this weekend, though the quality will be amplified under the Vegas lights!

Comment below whose design was your favourite!