Cinema and motor sports are the perfect combination, and both have crossed paths on countless occasions thanks to the world of superheroes. Whether you’re Team Marvel or a DC Comics lover, Formula 1 has a strong link with the world’s biggest and best franchises, from special liveries and comic book collaborations to shoes on the podium, these heroes have seen it all.
Ocon’s heroic helmet designs
haas Esteban Ocon is a self-confessed Marvel fan and isn’t afraid to tell the world about it through fun racing helmet designs or social media updates. From spending New Year’s Eve at Disneyland Paris’s Avengers Campus to posing for photos at the cinema while you watch Good heavens*.
Your favorite hero? That has to be Spider-Man. He even received an RC Spider-Man as a gift from his Secret Santa last season, so his collaboration with Spider-Man: New Day Even more special this summer.
Since meeting Tom Holland, the actor who plays the friendly neighborhood superhero, during the press tour, Ocon made a special spider man themed racing helmet for the Belgian and Hungarian Grands Prix last month, and even brought it as a prop to the film’s London premiere.
This is the third time that the Frenchman has adopted a Spidey-themed helmet, after having presented his own trilogy with spider man designs for the 2022, 2025 and 2026 seasons. When racing for Alpine, Ocon also used a deadpool-inspired helmet for the 2023 Las Vegas Grand Prix, which he was able to show to the team’s investor, Ryan Reynolds, who plays the sarcastic and witty antihero.
Alpine’s impressive inverters
In 2023, the Alpine The F1 team revealed that they had secured a €200 million cash injection from a group of investors, which included several big Hollywood names. Among them were Reynolds and Academy Award-winning actor Michael B. Jordan, who had a major role in the Marvel film. Black Panther.
The investment group – formed by Otro Capital, RedBird Capital Partners and Maximum Effort Investments – acquired a 24% stake in the F1 team, along with other sports stars such as Travis Kelce and Patrick Mahomes of the Kansas City Chiefs, golf icon Rory McIlroy and professional boxer Anthony Joshua.
As part of this partnership, Alpine conducted a Deadpool and Wolverine One-off livery ahead of the 2024 Belgian Grand Prix, which saw it changed to a red and yellow color scheme from the usual blue and pink, complete with claw marks on the rear of the A524 car.
Special cutlery with Superman
DC Comics has also found a home in the F1 paddock, with red bull showcasing a now iconic livery and matching racing suits to promote Superman returns during the 2006 Monaco Grand Prix.
The unique livery clearly proved to be powerful, without additional help from the planet Krypton, as the team achieved its first podium in Formula 1 that weekend thanks to David Coulthard.
Although Coulthard raced in his usual Red Bull suit, he was handed a red cape for his podium appearance, and that then made a trip to the pool as former team boss Christian Horner jumped in after claiming his first silver medal.
Several stars of Superman returns They attended the Monte Carlo event in 2006 and, more recently, David Corenswet, DC’s last Clark Kent, visited the paddock and grid ahead of the 2025 Singapore Grand Prix.
Carbon in comics
He williams racing couple Alejandro Albon and Carlos Sainz It was recently turned into actual comics, thanks to a collaboration between the team and the Marvel Universe. The unique books also feature team principal James Vowles, along with his F1 driver duo, and are available with special covers at several events this season, including Monaco, Miami and Silverstone.
The synopsis reveals that Doctor Doom has some “diabolical plans” to take the podium, but even with the help of Iron Man and his fellow Avengers, the Williams racers face grave danger as they fight to maintain their championship challenge.
The pairing between two brilliant brands continues during the second half of the season, with more special variants of the comic book cover in Madrid, Singapore, Austin and Las Vegas.
Dark Knight’s Delights
the incredible The dark knight trilogy Christopher Nolan’s got the F1 treatment twice, with some interesting activations at the British Grands Prix.
The first to use the Batman brand was Toyota, which promoted The dark knight in 2008. The iconic bat outline was seen on the red and white livery, as well as on the racing suits of Jarno Trulli and Timo Glock and throughout the team’s motorhome. The Epic Batpod and Batmobile were also added, the latter of which was used in a photocall for a practice pit stop.
For the final film in the award-winning trilogy, The dark knight rises, Lotus placed special stickers on their cars, helmets and in the garage to promote the 2012 film. Drivers Kimi Raikkonen and Romain Grosjean retained the gold The dark knight rises logos and the military-grade Tumbler prototype returned to the Silverstone start and finish straight.
Hamilton’s Black Panther Tribute
Seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton He dedicated his 93rd pole position in Formula 1 to black panther Actor Chadwick Boseman, who died the day before, at the 2020 Belgian Grand Prix.
Leaving after setting an incredible lap, which placed him five tenths faster than his previous mercedes teammate Valtteri Bottas Secondly, Hamilton performed the “Wakanda Forever” salute from the film, creating an emotional tribute to the Hollywood star.
“It’s a really important pole for me because I woke up to the saddest news of Chadwick’s passing,” Hamilton said at the post-qualifying press conference at the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps.
“What he’s done for our people, what he’s done for… this superhero shows all these young people that it’s possible. He was such a bright light. So we’ll carry him around forever.”
Patrick Stewart savors a shoey
Finding Hollywood’s biggest names in Formula 1 is common, as so many movie stars want to get up close and personal with the sport. Names like Florence Pugh, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Chris Pratt, Nicholas Hoult and Brie Larson have watched Grand Prix racing over the years, and the list doesn’t end there.
Chris Hemsworth has attended a couple of races, most recently in 2023, having played the God of Thunder. thor since 2011. His love for motorsports also stems from playing 1976 world driver champion James Hunt in the popular film. Run.
Sir Patrick Stewart fell victim to peer pressure when he joined Daniel Ricciardo on a podium at the 2017 Canadian Grand Prix. The actor, who plays Professor Charles Xavier in the X-Men series and reprises her role alongside Hemsworth in the upcoming Avengers: Judgment Day film this winter, was tasked with presenting interviews with the top three. Ricciardo finished third for Red Bull Racing and managed to convince Stewart to drink champagne from his race-used boot.
Benedict Cumberbatch was also given the responsibility of hosting the post-race press interviews on the podium of the 2014 Malaysian Grand Prix, but fortunately for doctor strange there were no shoes in sight.
Tom Holland’s Masterclass in Monaco
He spider man The actor has always expressed his love for Formula 1 and had the opportunity of a lifetime to wave the checkered flag for the 2023 Monaco Grand Prix. As expected from a muscular Marvel star, Holland made it look easy at first, but after a while his arm started to hurt from the weight and they soon started making small mistakes, like hitting the camera backwards.
Still, there’s no denying that Holland lived the dream of many motorsports fans, and we all enjoyed watching him experience that moment in one of racing’s most magical venues.
Monaco has also been the setting for many films, with iron man 2 using the historic Grand Prix as a key part of the 2010 film starring Robert Downey Jr.
Antonelli’s masked mission
Kimi Antonelli he went undercover during Free Practice 1 during the Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix earlier this year, while third Mercedes driver Frederic Vesti got behind the wheel for a rookie free practice session. His costume? TO spider man mask, which looked like it was maybe for a child…
Sitting in the stands in front of the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, eagle-eyed fans and broadcast cameras caught the suspicious figure sitting in exclusively Mercedes merchandise with his mask and the occasional curl peeking out from under his hoodie, and put two and two together.