Lotus driver Kimi Raikkonen has made a slight change to his special Monaco helmet design ahead of Saturday’s sessions, with the move rumored to have been encouraged by Formula One Management.
Many of the drivers have opted to run with an alternative helmet livery in homage to F1’s glamour event, with Sebastian Vettel and Lewis Hamilton’s designs attracting the most attention from the fans. Similarly, Jean-Eric Vergne is using a helmet based on the one used by Francois Cevert, who raced in F1 between 1970 and 1973. However, it is Raikkonen’s which has been reportedly picked up on by FOM, but the team refused to confirm whether or not these reports were true.
Raikkonen’s helmet did feature a design in homage to James Hunt (as he did in 2012), but it also ran with the tagline “Kimi on the Hunt” which was in full view of his onboard camera. Under FIA guidelines, advertising that faces the cameras is forbidden, which could be the reasoning behind the decision to change the design.
Speaking to GPUpdate, Lotus stated: “Kimi’s helmet has been modified since being used on Thursday.”
However, the team has refused to comment on the reasons behind the change.
