Will someone PLEASE slap the FIA.

[Firstgear]

I prefer the helmet design for each driver to remain the same, but legislating it is probably going too far. Maybe a good comprimise would be to allow a helmet scheme change when/if the car has a one-off livery change. This would allow a change, but give them a little more incentive to remain mostly consistent.

[jens]

I spent a long Baseball career being told that, and never had a problem with it

Well, in a sports team game the whole team needs to wear same colours.

In F1... the cars of team-mates are in the same colour. So the last thing left personally for drivers are the helmets. IMO they should do whatever they like with helmets.

[Bagwan]

If they want to change them , it's alright with me , but they should realize that they do give up that element of instant recognition when they sell the space .

You can easily argue either point , that it's better to have them know you , them being both the drivers and the fans , or , that you can make money doing it .

I have always liked being able to tell who it was without having to figure out who had the red camera .
A helmet makes it easy , especially if it isn't to busy .
Even just a basic theme makes it easier to identify them as they are going by .

[Doc Austin]

I can see Vettel's side of it too. He loves helmets and wants a new design every time out. Who knows.....maybe he is superstitious about it. If I was collecting helmets, I would be the same way.

Today's helmet designs are so complicated that the only one I can pick out is Nico's, simply because it's no-gloss black with very little else. I think the rule is pointless because you can hardly tell one helmet from the other at speed.

Again, if they want the cars and drivers to be more identifiable, make the numbers bigger. Each driver had to pick a permanent number this year anyway, so why not exploit that? Make them run nascar size numbers on the wing endplates. That would stop all the confusion.

[Bagwan]

If they are going to be so draconian as to regulate it , why not make them wear their number on the top of the lid ?
And , make it a big ol' number , so's the old Rolex wearers can see them .

Do with the rest of the lid as you wish .

[Tazio]

Again, if they want the cars and drivers to be more identifiable, make the numbers bigger. Each driver had to pick a permanent number this year anyway, so why not exploit that? Make them run nascar size numbers on the wing endplates. That would stop all the confusion.

Maybe someone who actually cares about this international tragedy should kindly please be slapping the teams.......OK?

Teams refused requests from the FIA and FOM for bigger driver numbers to be displayed on the cars, claiming the space was required for sponsors. So the helmet restrictions were a compromise and the guru of common sense – Niki Lauda has this to say: “I think the rule makes sense. Sometimes I can’t recognise even my own drivers in the car.”

Maybe even slap Niki's other ear off

[Doc Austin]

Maybe even slap Niki's other ear off

Does Niki still have an ear?

[anfield5]

So we were looking at a clear, still picture of a very famous driver who hasn't substantially changed his helmet design in 35 years or something. Two committed F1 fans attempted to answer the question and neither correctly identified the driver. Doesn't this tell us that helmet designs are not a terribly effective way of telling who's who?

Legislating helmet designs is utterly ridiculous. If it turns out someone on motorsport.com accidentally posted the "April fools" story 6 weeks early I won't be at all surprised.

Ah but I did recognise it as Alain Prost, the mistake I made was in thinking was maybe his son Nicholas used the same design as with Graeme and Damon Hill. And to be able to recognise the Prost helmet design 22 years after his retirement proves that helmet designs are an effective way of telling who is who.

[anfield5]

as opposed to this sort of carry on from Vettel


sorry about the low quality image - all I could find at short notice

[CNR]

there is room for large numbers