Six-wheelers, outrageous trophies, and a pound coin – 8 museum-worthy items from Formula 1

Every sport has its artefacts and items that carry significance – it could be the trophies, jerseys, or match balls that end up on display in museums around the world. But Formula 1, perhaps more than any other, has a habit of producing things that carry heaps of history within them.

On World Museum Day, we’ve picked eight items from the world of F1 that we think belong somewhere far more prestigious than a storage unit…

Charles Leclerc’s Monaco 2024 helmet

Winning a home race is one of the greatest achievements any driver can claim – but winning a home race at Monaco is another feat altogether. For Charles Leclerc, his home race had felt almost cursed, with years of agonising crashes, retirements and near misses haunting him.

When the curse finally lifted in 2024, the outpour of emotion was beautiful – a victory that virtually everyone in attendance needed to see. During what would become one of the most life-changing moments of his career, Leclerc was wearing a special edition helmet that would become tied to one of the most iconic victories in recent memory.

It had a bold split between a metallic Ferrari red and crisp white – a nod to both the Monegasque flag and the Scuderia – with some sharp patterns across its shell, his number 16 on the side and MONACO written around the rear. It’s certainly a helmet that deserves to be remembered – not just for its design, but what it represents.

Michael Schumacher’s debut 1991 car

Few could have predicted just how significant the 1991 race weekend at Spa-Francorchamps would prove to be. The 22-year-old Michael Schumacher arrived in the Jordan garage as a late replacement for Bertrand Gachot – he was an unknown entity who learnt the legendary circuit on a fold-out bike and stayed in a youth hostel over the weekend – but he qualified in seventh, leaving quite the impression on the paddock.

The Jordan 191 he drove over that weekend is arguably one of the most significant cars in F1 history – although not for its on-track performance. A clutch issue ended Schumacher’s afternoon on Lap 1, but the car remains one of the most beautiful ever built – it might well have earned its place in this collection based on looks alone. This stunning car will always be remembered as the one that began one of the greatest careers in sporting history, with Schumacher going on to win seven World Championships.

Senna’s racing helmet

Helmets don’t get much more recognisable than Ayrton Senna’s bold yellow and green design. Inspired by his home country’s colours, the colour scheme has become synonymous with the legend, along with his driving style and celebrations.

Senna wore this distinctive design throughout his entire career – and it is still poignant decades later, as you can see the famous yellow lid on posters, signs, and murals in major cities and small towns across the world.

Its influence has never faded, as drivers have long worn their own special yellow helmet over the years to pay tribute to an icon who inspired so many. But perhaps no moment captured that better than when the Senna family presented Lewis Hamilton with one of Ayrton’s original helmets at the 2017 Canadian Grand Prix – the weekend he matched his hero’s record of 65 pole positions.

The pound coin that bought Brawn GP

One of the sport’s most extraordinary fairytale stories began with a transaction that is almost laughable by the sport’s standards – Ross Brawn purchasing the assets of the collapsed Honda Racing team for one pound.

Figures in F1 tend to operate in the millions, so the headline figure was shockingly small, although significant investment followed to keep the operation from going under entirely. Brawn GP was launched just in time for the 2009 season opener, but what happened next was downright unbelievable.

That season, Brawn GP went on to win eight races, with Jenson Button winning the Drivers’ Championship and the team taking the Constructors’ title – before the team was bought out for over £100 million and reborn as Mercedes.

Honda’s then-Motorsports Managing Officer Hiroshi Oshima has admitted to keeping the coin, reflecting that it had turned out to be priceless! That pound coin is easily one of the best value transactions in sporting history, so we reckon it belongs in a glass cabinet, not a wallet!

Ferrari 641

The Ferrari 641/2 is a racing car that transcends the sport. For long-time fans, it perfectly sums up what F1 looks like, while its design is so striking that it spent time on display at the Museum of Modern Art in New York – a work of art as well as a high-performance racing machine.

That said, its significance goes far beyond its looks. The 641/2 was the car Alain Prost drove in his controversial battle against Senna for the world title in 1990, with the pair colliding in Japan, resulting in the Brazilian claiming the title.

But if the MoMA thought it belonged on display in their collection, then who are we to argue?

The punctured tyre from Hamilton’s 2020 British GP win

There were plenty of memorable moments during the 2020 season, but the final few laps of the British Grand Prix were some of the best of the year. The end of the race was packed full of drama as the likes of Carlos Sainz and Valtteri Bottas fell victim to punctures in the last stint.

Whilst leading the field by a healthy margin, Hamilton’s front left gave way too, with Max Verstappen closing rapidly behind him. What had been a lead of almost 25 seconds at the start of the final lap seemed doomed – but somehow, Hamilton coaxed his Mercedes around the final corners at Silverstone to take victory, crossing the line on three wheels with just a handful of seconds to spare.

It was a remarkable win showcasing the sheer car control that made Hamilton a seven-time World Champion. A punctured tyre might not sound like obvious museum material for most, but we believe this one absolutely is!

Tyrrell P34

Every now and then in F1, a car comes along that pushes the boundaries of what the sport previously considered possible – but adding two extra wheels seems scarcely believable now. That’s exactly what the Tyrrell P34 did, promptly becoming the most eye-catching machine on the grid.

Conceived by Tyrrell’s Chief Designer Derek Gardner, the P34 raced in the 1976 and 1977 seasons with a radical six-wheel configuration that replaced the traditional twin front wheels for four smaller ones. It was planned to reduce aerodynamic drag and increase braking efficiency – and it succeeded.

Whilst originally dismissed by some, it didn’t take long to prove doubters wrong as Jody Scheckter and Patrick Depailler took the P34 to an incredible 1-2 finish at the 1976 Swedish Grand Prix, proving that the concept had genuine merit.

However, in the following year, the car did not perform to expectations, and the project was eventually abandoned. With the six-wheeled concept banned a few years later, the P34 remains one of a kind and one of the most interesting machines to ever grace an F1 grid certainly belongs in a museum.

French GP trophies

F1 has a proud tradition of stunning and diverse trophies. We’ve seen Monaco’s circuit-shaped silverware, Great Britain’s distinguished Royal Automobile Club trophy, and Hungary’s beautiful porcelain designs – but the French Grand Prix’s efforts might be the most unique out there.

Awarded to the podium finishers, the Pirelli monkey trophy was introduced at the 2018 edition. Designed by renowned French artist and sculptor Richard Orlinski, the trophy is a nod to a series of his bold sculptures that reside at the Circuit Paul Ricard, including a panther, a horse and a bear.

Inspired by King Kong, the trophy depicts a brightly coloured gorilla – often in the colours of the French flag – which holds a Pirelli tyre or barrel aloft. It has certainly divided opinion, leaving drivers equally baffled and charmed. While the race is no longer on the calendar, we think it’s an unusual trophy worthy of museum status.