Steve Slater on Formula One: The lucky numbers game

One of the more unusual changes to the sporting regulations which will govern Formula One in 2014 is that each driver will in future be allowed to select a race number which he can use for the duration of his Formula One career. It is leading to some interesting scenarios.

The jostling for dedicated Formula One numbers is starting to look every bit as competitive as an F1 first corner. Typically Kimi Raikkonen was one of the first out of the box, telling the Finnish newspaper Ilta-Sanomat that he wants his lucky number, 7, for his Ferrari next season.

Raikkonen’s compatriot Valtteri Bottas has cleverly opted for the number “77” as his prime choice, and has already linked it to the hashtag “bo77as” on Twitter. His new Williams team-mate Felipe Massa has selected the number “19”, but no-one seems to know why, while Sergio Perez is hoping to make his move to the Force India team carrying the number “11”.

There is though, no guarantee that every chosen number will be allocated. The FIA rules state that drivers must submit three choices, with priority on any duplicate requests given to the driver who finished highest in the previous year’s championship.

Nico Rosberg has requested, in order of preference, “6”, “5” and “9”. The number “6” was carried by his father Keke Rosberg in 1982, the year he won the drivers world championship.

There would be controversy no doubt, were Rosberg to be given number “5.” For many race fans “Red 5” is inextricably linked to Nigel Mansell’s world championship bids for Williams.

Meanwhile both Jean-Eric Vergne and Jules Bianchi have included the number “27” in their bids. For many that number is sacred, carried by just two drivers in the past; the legendary Gilles Villeneuve at Ferrari and later in tribute, by the equally iconic Ayrton Senna.

Of course, Sebastian Vettel will automatically be offered the number “1”, after his thirteen victories in the nineteen races this year gave him his fourth successive world championship. However it is not compulsory that the German carries the number.

On one hand, it is hard to imagine Vettel without the number one on his car. On the other hand, Vettel could easily opt to make another number his own. Typically of course, Sebastian has made no comment just yet. You can almost see the wicked little grin appearing as he keeps us guessing.

There is another good reason why Vettel might not find number “1” so attractive. A bespoke number can create a profitable brand and sales franchise, and the number “1” is by its nature transient (although after four world championships it hardly seems so). There is no guarantee that Vettel would carry the number into 2015.

The American NASCAR racing series has profitably linked a start number to a driver for decades. As early as the 1970s, drivers such as Richard Petty became inextricably associated with the number “43” and Dale Earnhardt with the number “3” – and shirts, hats and jackets carrying the drivers’ numbers
and colors became the source of millions of dollars in merchandise sales.

It went even further. Following Dale Earnhardt’s death in a racing accident at Daytona in 2001, in a spontaneous tribute for the rest of that season, on the third lap of every race the normally roaring NASCAR crowd stood in silence, three fingers raised, in memory of the legendary driver.

Today, no-one would ever expect reigning NASCAR champion Jimmy Johnson to carry any number other than “48” on his Lowe’s Chevrolet, nor rival Jeff Gordon to carry anything other than “24”.  Dale Earnhardt Junior has made his own personal number “88” every bit as famous as his father’s.

In other areas of motor sport too, the link between participant and start number has been turned into a lucrative merchandise brand. MotoGP legend Valentino Rossi has turned his number “46” into a style icon, while Jorge Lorenzo’s number “99” merchandising website will sell you everything from a
bumper sticker to a $ 2,000 carbon-fibre racing helmet.

It is notable that some of the more savvy drivers on the starting grid are keeping their choices more secret, perhaps until they can get their marketing machines into top gear. Nothing yet has been heard of Fernando Alonso, Lewis Hamilton or Jenson Button’s preferences, while Romain Grosjean’s comment was merely “have fun guessing!”