If you thought F1 couldn't be any more out of touch with its fans

FLRacingFan

FLRacingFan

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Think again.

Formula 1 drivers will be banned from changing helmet designs in-season under new rules set to be introduced this year.

As part of a push to improve the promotional appeal of the sport, F1 chiefs have grown concerned that fans are turned off by drivers constantly changing their helmet colors. Unlike the days of Ayrton Senna (BELOW) when a drivers' iconic helmet design was part of his appeal, these days some drivers change their colors at every race. One of the most extreme examples is four-time world champion Sebastian Vettel, who has used some 60 different helmet designs over the course of his career.

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Just like a rule introduced last year that has required drivers to keep the same car number for their career in a bid to make it better for marketing, F1 will now force drivers to not change helmet designs as much.

High-level sources have revealed that teams, the FIA and Bernie Ecclestone have agreed to limit drivers to just one helmet design for the season. This was approved at a meeting of the F1 commission in Geneva this week, and is set to be ratified by the FIA's World Motor Sport Council for introduction this season.
The hope is that fans will be able to identify with drivers more easily both at the track and on television.

http://www.racer.com/f1/item/113547-f1-helmet-design-changes-to-be-banned
 
They must be using the same consultants as the NFL. No changing the uniform or you'll get fined. Next thing to go will be champagne spraying on the podium; it will be deemed excessive celebration.
 
Honestly, I don't completely disagree with this rule. The helmet is often the only way fans can pick out who's running where, especially since team cars are identical. Hell, I've even seen the commentators get it wrong when something happens to one of the cars, and they call the wrong driver intially.
 
They usually end up going to a charity to be auctioned. The charities would rather have a one of a kind helmet, they feel it brings more money. Helmets used to be like a drivers trademark. Kind of hard to have a trademark if it changes every race.
 
I can't believe they spent time thinking about it, let alone make a rule about it. Too much time during the off season.
 
My favorite helmet was Tony Stewart doing the 24 Hours of Daytona. He had a toothy grin with a missing tooth along the jaw of his helmet - I thought it was funny. (can't find a pic of it).
 
I think I would like to see them keep the same helmet. From what I have seen, they keep the same car colors. Indycar changes them all the time. Seeing Dario Franchiti go from a red Target painted car to a pink Huggies car was kind of different. But I guess most of them aren't painted as much as they have big stickers to look like they are painted. But, I guess the drivers like to have different helmets. So, it doesn't really matter to me.

:)
 
VaDirt said:
Honestly, I don't completely disagree with this rule. The helmet is often the only way fans can pick out who's running where, especially since team cars are identical. Hell, I've even seen the commentators get it wrong when something happens to one of the cars, and they call the wrong driver intially.
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I agree. You used to know what Senna or Mario/Michael Andretti's helmet looked like. Guys do change them a lot, which is a little sad to me. But, I'm not sure the FIA needed to regulate it.
 
When every team has the same livery for both cars it's the easiest way to distinguish between drivers.
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In American racing the helmet is usually part of the sponsorship package. Changing the helmet color often reminds me of how often some NASCAR teams change body wraps. I prefer some consistency in team colors but the helmet seems more like a personal piece of equipment and the driver should be able to do what he wants. In F1 the helmet does distinguish one driver from the other. I'm not sure, but I think they use the helmet color in some of the TV graphics to ID drivers so frequent changes makes their job more of a hassle.
 
Zerkfitting said:
In American racing the helmet is usually part of the sponsorship package. Changing the helmet color often reminds me of how often some NASCAR teams change body wraps. I prefer some consistency in team colors but the helmet seems more like a personal piece of equipment and the driver should be able to do what he wants. In F1 the helmet does distinguish one driver from the other. I'm not sure, but I think they use the helmet color in some of the TV graphics to ID drivers so frequent changes makes their job more of a hassle.
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Honestly, the best way to identify drivers is to know which driver on each team has the black T-bar and which has the bright yellow T-bar.

A bunch of drivers started doing themed helmets based on the particular GP (such as the ones below for the U.S. GP), doing one-offs for Monaco, doing something with some more shine for Singapore/Bahrain/Abu Dhabi, and so on. Not really sure why it had to be regulated.

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Honestly, the best way to identify drivers is to know which driver on each team has the black T-bar and which has the bright yellow T-bar.
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I didn't know about the t-bar color. Helmet artwork is fine with me. But the bottom line is who ever is paying your salary should decide (or negotiate it in your contract) - F1 regulations are over stepping their authority.
 
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