Verstappen wears Brazil’s colors. Bortoleto carries a childhood hero. Across the Interlagos garages, this weekend’s special helmets reveal connections that go beyond the paint.
Brazil’s green, yellow and blue are spreading through the Formula 1 garages at Interlagos. But look closer at this weekend’s helmets and the similarities give way to something more personal.
Max Verstappen and Nico Hülkenberg have embraced the host country’s colors. Gabriel Bortoleto has taken a different route, using a predominantly white design to carry a tribute to Ayrton Senna. Elsewhere, drivers are bringing their family heritage, football loyalties and earliest racing memories into the cockpit.
Brazil’s colors, different approaches
Verstappen’s special design combines yellow, green and blue with white sections, giving his familiar helmet a distinctly Brazilian appearance. The colors extend around the visor opening, making the change especially noticeable in close-up cockpit photographs.
Hülkenberg’s version uses a glittering green finish, bold yellow details and dark blue sections. His recognizable star motif remains, giving the Audi driver a Brazilian variation on his own design.
Alongside him, Bortoleto’s helmet asks viewers to look beyond the national colors.
Bortoleto brings Senna along
Bortoleto explained in Thursday’s FIA press conference that he normally carries Brazil’s colors throughout the season. For his home race, he wanted a change.
The white helmet includes an illustration of Senna lifting the trophy after his first Brazilian Grand Prix victory in 1991, marking 35 years since that breakthrough.
There’s a family connection behind it. Bortoleto’s father was a major Senna fan, and Gabriel grew up hearing about him. The tribute brings those childhood stories into Bortoleto’s own home Grand Prix.
Senna also inspired Kimi Antonelli’s special Interlagos helmet. His yellow, green and blue design honors the same 1991 victory, connecting another generation of drivers to the Brazilian champion.
More than a Brazilian color scheme
Other drivers have chosen different personal connections for the weekend.
Franco Colapinto’s blue-and-yellow helmet nods to Boca Juniors, bringing his Argentine football allegiance to the South American round.
Arvid Lindblad’s Diwali-inspired design celebrates his Indian heritage. We explored the family story behind Lindblad’s Brazil helmet in our earlier feature.
Oliver Bearman has looked back to his own beginnings, reviving his first helmet design for São Paulo. Among tributes to champions and national colors, his special edition offers a glimpse of the young karter who was still working toward an F1 cockpit.
