Touching tributes and French influence: Martins’ helmet design explained

We take you behind the visor with MP Motorsport race-winner Victor Martins, who discusses the design of his helmet and delves into the backstory of where it all began.

The Alpine junior driver explains the French influence on his helmet and discusses the touching tributes to those who have helped him along the way in his career.

“My first painted helmet was done by my first designer when I was still karting in France, it was orange, black and white because those were the colours of the team that I was driving for. The current design was made over the winter ahead of this season

“I try and keep a similar design with similar colours each season. This design has the French colours on it. I really like blue, it’s my favourite colour. The orange is now red and there is still some white. We have also got some carbon on there, which I think adds a nice touch.

“At the front, you should be able to see that it makes the French flag, On one side it is red, and on the other it is blue, so it is making the French flag when you look at it from the front. There are little lines on the side, back and front of the helmet and that is for the alpine livery.

“There are some smaller details on there too. My uncle, JoJo, passed away a few years ago and he is on there. There is another person named on there, Franky, who introduced me to motorsport. I have their names on there with the two stars. There is a tribute to Anthoine Hubert on there also. I always have him with me.

“My logo is on the top, I created that at the end of 2017 with my big brother and his communications and management company, VictoryLane. I have that logo on my helmet, on my cap, on t-shirts, etc.

“My sponsors are all on there, the French team, Alpine, Bell, Victorian. Alpine always go on the visor to show their support. It is great to be an Alpine junior, they have given me a lot of support and advice. They help me to develop as a driver and as a person. I can work with their engineers, I can drive their simulator. They help me physically and mentally to ensure that I am as ready as possible, and they also support me financially.

“The helmet is painted by BS Designs, who I have worked with since 2017. Then, Adrien Paviot - who also works with F1 drivers like Charles Leclerc, Pierre Gasly and Romain Grosjean - is a friend and has made some great designs for me.”