British GP one-off liveries: Williams, McLaren and Aston Martin reveal Silverstone colour schemes

It may not hold the modern glamour of Miami or Las Vegas, but the historic British Grand Prix remains an equal spectacle on the F1 calendar — a perfect excuse for teams to go racing in some iconic one-off liveries.

F1’s 57th visit to the Silverstone circuit — in its 75th year — will be a site of celebration for three teams: Williams, McLaren and Aston Martin, with many drivers also choosing to pay homage with eye-catching helmet designs.

The Monaco Grand Prix provided our first taste of custom livery designs in 2023 — McLaren celebrating its triple-crown anniversary with an orange and white colour scheme — and it appears more designers have been given free-reign ahead of the British round.

 

Williams’s 800th grand prix livery

Williams will utilise the fandom of the British Grand Prix to celebrate a landmark achievement: entry into 800 F1 grands prix…and counting.

Unfortunately, due to the cancellation of the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix in May, this weekend’s race will not actually be Williams’ 800th GP. That milestone will instead being achieved in Hungary. Nevertheless, for Britain’s most successful F1 constructor, celebrating on home turf seems fitting.

The FW45 will run in its familiar blue livery with a British flag on the engine cover and a matching white rear wing, and will retain the paint scheme for the Hungarian Grand Prix

 

McLaren’s chrome livery

After apparently years of asking, Lando Norris will at last be able to race in a chrome covered McLaren — a nod to the team’s former livery it ran from 2006-2014, to one of its current sponsors, and a continuation of its 60th anniversary celebrations.

“I’d say every year I’ve been pestering [Zak Brown] a little bit to want to go back a little bit in that direction,” said Norris at the unveiling of the livery. “That’s what I grew up watching, that’s what I fell in love with in many ways. I feel like I can say it, it inspired me to be a Formula 1 driver.”

This weekend’s car will feature chrome sections, littered with papaya orange and a matching helmet for Norris who will hope to emulate Lewis Hamilton‘s success in similar colours – winning McLaren’s last world title in 2008.

 

Aston Martin’s Valvoline livery

Unlike its F1 peers, Aston Martin will be running a minimalist one-off livery – celebrating a new partnership with Valvoline Global, its official lubricant partner.

The brand’s colours – red and blue – will be displayed on the Aston’s engine cover and part of the side pod, while its logo will be added to the front wing.