The Formula 1 Strategy Group has put forward the idea of letting drivers pick their own number for their entire careers, and I am absolutely in favour of it. The winner of the world championship will have the option to switch to number 1 after winning the title, but otherwise the system will allow them to build a following using the number as their branding. Becoming an Fl brand is not an easy business, particularly when you spend most of your time on TV hidden in the car and wearing a helmet. These used to be a way for drivers to have their own identities, but these days the designs are fiddly and some drivers change them every other weekend, so you can't rely on them as a means of identification, as was once the case. Fans from the 1970s and 1980s can tell you what a Gilles Villeneuve, Patrick Depailler, Alan Jones or Ayrton Senna helmet looked like, but who can tell one from another today?
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