“Thou shalt defeat the enemy”: Alonso’s Monaco helmet design

2012 Monaco Grand Prix

23rd May 2012, 16:1523rd May 2012, 16:20 | Written by Keith Collantine

Fernando Alonso will use this special helmet design for the Monaco Grand Prix weekend.

Like last year, the helmet is gold-coloured. The design incorporates the Cross of the Angels as it appears on the flag of the principality of Asturias, where Alonso’s home town is.

The cross is shown on a coin bearing an inscription of the Latin motto of the Kingdom of Asturias, which translates as “With this sign thou shalt defend the pious, with this sign thou shalt defeat the enemy.”

On the top of the helmet is an illustration of a Ferrari 158 (seemingly based on this photograph). The team won the constructors’ championship with it in 1964 and John Surtees claimed the drivers’ title.

The rear of the helmet refers to Alonso’s two wins at Monaco in 2006 and 2007. It also displays other statistics relating to his career and the race, including this being the 70th running (“edition”) of the Monaco Grand Prix.

Fernando Alonso’s 2012 Monaco Grand Prix helmet

2012 Monaco Grand Prix

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Keith Collantine

Lifelong motor sport fan Keith set up RaceFans in 2005 - when it was originally called F1 Fanatic. Having previously worked as a motoring...
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48 comments on ““Thou shalt defeat the enemy”: Alonso’s Monaco helmet design”

Robbie (@robbie)
23rd May 2012, 16:24

Very cool!
1. Keith Collantine (@keithcollantine)
  23rd May 2012, 16:28
  
  @robbie Agreed, some very nice details.
2. hoshi (@hoshi)
  23rd May 2012, 21:27
  
  This is an absolutely awesome design and an ingenious way of spurring the engineering staff Ferrari team!
  
  I hope that Massa doesn’t get depressed with all the focus on Alonso, which I should add is rightfully deserved. I think it would have been wiser to give Felipe a special helmet too..
  1. Kimi4WC
    24th May 2012, 5:43
    
    On the opposite, he should forget who Alonso is. Focus on his own thing and speed will come.
    
    Everyone is trying to make Massa drive like Alonso, it’s same making a man run faster by bonding him to a driving car.
    
    Best thing for Massa is that everyone will forget about him, but he does not have that luxury cause he is driving for Ferrari and he getting paid (A LOT) to deal with all that crap, which he seems to have trouble with dealing.
3. JFYI
  24th May 2012, 8:56
  
  JFYI: That’s not the Cross of the Angels, that’s the Victory Cross (as always on his helmet)
  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Victory_Cross
  Which only makes it even cooler ;)
Fer no.65 (@fer-no65)
23rd May 2012, 16:35

Nice!!!

Seen Jean-Eric Vergne’s Alesi tribute helmet ? http://www.gettyimages.es/detail/fotograf%C3%ADa-de-noticias/the-drivers-helmet-of-jean-eric-vergne-of-fotograf%C3%ADa-de-noticias/145048248

And Perez’s one with the Chapulin Colorado :P! http://www.eldiariodecoahuila.com.mx/fotografias/fotosnoticias/2012/5/22/int-140992.jpg
1. dau
  23rd May 2012, 20:24
  
  I like Vergne’s. He should keep it.
  
  Alonso’s is a bit …tacky. And the painter messed up the windshield of the 158 on top. Unless it’s supposed to be a dig at the 2012 noses.
  1. PMccarthy_is_a_legend (@pmccarthy_is_a_legend)
    23rd May 2012, 23:52
    
    There is no pleasing some people…
  2. Fer no.65 (@fer-no65)
    24th May 2012, 2:28
    
    Grab a pair of glasses and see that picture again. He didn’t mess it up, there’s a piece that goes atop the helmet for driver cooling that gets in the way thus “messing up”, if you can really say so, a brilliant drawing.
    
    And, yes, @pmccarthy_is_a_legend: sometimes people talk as if they could do it better…
    1. dau
      24th May 2012, 9:48
      
      He coloured the windshield in a solid red. The transparent aero device on the helmet has nothing to do with that. Neither has the question if i could do it better (though, yea, i think i would’ve made the windshield grey at least and using stencils isn’t actually that hard…)
      
      http://i.imgur.com/CuHmO.jpg
      
      And yes, it’s a minor detail, but it makes the car look kinda weird.
      1. Stjuuv (@stjuuv)
        24th May 2012, 11:48
        
        The fact that its red is one thing, but your dig at this years’ nose design is not the work of the artist, but (as pointed out above) of the transparent aero device, which diffracts the light and makes that entire part seem higher than it’s actually drawn. You can also see the effect ending abrubtly at the side of the yellow helmet, where the aero device ends as well.
      2. dau
        24th May 2012, 21:04
        
        The nose thing was my attempt at a joke, because it reminded me of those. Not due to the refraction, which does make it look even slightly higher, but because of the windshield being coloured the same way as the chassis, making it all look like one part. It was just a stupid comment at a mistake and/or simplification by the artist, i didn’t really expect the Spanish Inquisition.
        
        @Francuis: According to the OED, a “painter” is also “an artist who works with paint”. Could be wrong of course.
  3. Francuis (@francuis)
    24th May 2012, 16:10
    
    A painter is someone who paints houses. An artist on the other hand……..
2. Guilherme (@guilherme)
  23rd May 2012, 23:44
  
  @fer-no65 Chapulin Colorado!! :D That’s something I’d never expect to see in a helmet! Oh, the childhood memories it brings :P
  1. Fer no.65 (@fer-no65)
    24th May 2012, 2:29
    
    @guilherme appartently, El Show de Chespirito (the guy who plays the Chapulin and El Chavo) was his favourite TV show :P.
    
    Good guy!
3. AndrewTanner (@andrewtanner)
  24th May 2012, 8:06
  
  @fer-no65 I like Perez’s though I don’t really get it!
  1. Guilherme (@guilherme)
    24th May 2012, 15:59
    
    @andrewtanner El Chapulin Colorado (“The Red Grasshopper”) is a superhero from a Mexican humour show, played by Roberto Bolaños. I think I’m not overdoing it in saying that Chapulin and his other character, El Chavo, are almost a legends in Latin America. I really, really loved Sergio’s tribute because I grew up watching these shows :D
Woofie
23rd May 2012, 16:50

Loving the symbolism. Ferrari the pious and the enemy – the rest…..
F1Yankee (@f1yankee)
23rd May 2012, 16:50

wow, that helmet looks as good as the cars look bad! sebastian, fernando is cooler than you.
1. avegaille (@avegaille)
  23rd May 2012, 17:19
  
  +1
2. BasCB (@bascb)
  23rd May 2012, 19:01
  
  LOL, not sure I really like the complete helmet, but it really is interesting for the details and thoughts put into it.
3. nonameatall
  23rd May 2012, 21:06
  
  Yeah, cause he copies other people he is cooler than them….SURE, another beer?
  1. F1Yankee (@f1yankee)
    24th May 2012, 5:57
    
    copies? i don’t recall anyone else with a helmet that looks like that or features those details. or is it only vettel is allowed to have fancy brain buckets?
    1. Neel Jani (@neelv27)
      24th May 2012, 9:43
      
      Yes, he meant that Fernando Alonso 2012 copied Fernando Alonso 2011’s helmet
4. Kimi4WC
  24th May 2012, 5:46
  
  I actually loved how Vettel’s helmet looked while he was driving around in Spain. Plenty of white on top gave it some special character.
Nigel Bates (@nigel1)
23rd May 2012, 17:10

The Latin motto is a bit feeble for a racing driver.

How about “Excrementum ex trulla”… ?
1. KeeleyObsessed (@keeleyobsessed)
  24th May 2012, 8:49
  
  What’s ‘All the time you have to leave a space’ in Latin?
  1. dennis (@dennis)
    24th May 2012, 12:02
    
    Actually, what is “Fernando is faster than you, can you copy?” in latin?
damonsmedley (@damonsmedley)
23rd May 2012, 17:11

Cool design, sickly colours! Gold just looks awful on helmets…
1. libertywho (@libertywho)
  23rd May 2012, 17:21
  
  Agree. It’s just horrible. Looks like he borrowed design idea from HRT.
  1. Kingshark (@kingshark)
    23rd May 2012, 18:07
    
    Are you serious? I love golden helmets. I guess it must be my taste. :p
    1. libertywho (@libertywho)
      23rd May 2012, 19:04
      
      Quite possibly. I just think gold looks perverse and using it in Monaco is a cliché.
2. Fixy (@)
  23rd May 2012, 18:18
  
  I like gold, and there’s also some extra white… but too much gold! A little gold somewhere is fine, but this is almost entirely gold!
  Also, not much fantasy at Ferrari…
xeroxpt (@)
23rd May 2012, 17:49

Its cool but it does look a bit sloppy bad designing guess helmets dont like cartoonish designs I think the gambling helmet of Hamilton looks much better.
Yoshisune (@yobo01)
23rd May 2012, 18:32

Also Grosjean has announced a special helmet design for Monaco: http://www.lotusf1team.com/Going-for-Gold-New-Helmet-Design.html?lang=en

I don’t understand why everyone uses gold on Monaco. I don’t like how it looks on helmets :(
1. Ewa Zaborska (@lilla-my)
  23rd May 2012, 18:37
  
  Because of all these Principality, Royalty, glamour, money (won or lost in the casinos) and all the bliss thing? I think gold suits Monaco image very well.
  BTW: I love this helmet. As Keith said – some great details there.
Juan Taveras (@jayt20)
23rd May 2012, 19:27

Love the helmet…its a Marvelous design for a Marvelous Grand Prix
Lothario
23rd May 2012, 22:42

This is why I love Monaco, every year many drivers change their helmet design. Alonso, Grosjean, Vergne and Perez have done so far, and I imagine many others will.
verstappen (@verstappen)
23rd May 2012, 23:06

I sum velocius omnes
disgruntled
24th May 2012, 0:21

would blend in very nicely hanging from the ceilings of the the local chinese take away shop
Dane. (@dane-1)
24th May 2012, 0:47

If anyone is interested: Mark Webber has a competition to design his helmet for Singapore http://www.markwebber.com/off-the-track-news/the-aussie-grit-helmet-promotion-is-here/
raymondu999 (@raymondu999)
24th May 2012, 6:03

Are the roulette numbers random? Or do they have significance? I remember Hamilton had one Monaco helmet once with the roulette ball in roulette slot number 44 – which was something like his number for his first karting victory?
1. Arijit (@arijitmaniac)
  24th May 2012, 9:33
  
  Look closer… Each number has small black text describing its significance… For e.g. the number 19 has Turns below it referring to the 19 turns on the Monaco circuit.
GeeMac (@geemac)
24th May 2012, 6:33

Other than the picture of the 158 on the top (which is a little out of keeping with the style of this lid) I have to say this is an incredible design. Really really like it.
AndrewTanner (@andrewtanner)
24th May 2012, 8:00

Looks good! I bet it will look even better as the sun bounces off it. I hope we don’t confuse it with Massa’s yellow and green one though.
dysthanasiac (@)
24th May 2012, 8:06

The Cross of the Angels is always on Alonso’s helmet.
Neel Jani (@neelv27)
24th May 2012, 9:51

Alonso, Grosjean and Vergne’s helmets are looking very cool. Perez, umm.. not really.

We are still awaiting Vettel’s design. I always have loved Sebastian’s helmet liveries barring a few like Silverstone 2011. In 2011, during the weekend of races like Valencia and Abu Dhabi, I was keenly looking forward to seeing Vettel’s helmets rather than the GP itself.

I liked his liveries this year as well except the one he used in China 2012 and Spain 2012 was excellent.
Rahim.RG (@rahim-rg)
24th May 2012, 11:40

Raikkonen has James Hunt on his Helmet..