Lewis Hamilton reveals winning 2017 helmet design

The Mercedes driver launched the competition, which attracted more than 8,000 entries, last month.

Hamilton announced on his Instagram account on Wednesday that he had chosen Brazilian designer Rai Caldato as the winner.

Caldato's adaptation of Hamilton's 2016 design swaps out white for candy red as the base colour, and has added the colours of the Brazilian flag as a tribute to Hamilton's idol Ayrton Senna.

Hamilton said the addition of "yellow throughout reminds me of my helmets in the past", and he noted that it features three stars representing his world championships.

He added that he was "taken aback" by the creativity shown through the various entries he received.

His statement in full read.

"Here it is. The winning helmet design, a creation by Raí Caldato - @caldatodesign from Brazil. Raí evolves my layout by adding new stripe elements on the sides. As a tribute to my hero, Ayrton Senna the helmet features the colours of Brazil - green, yellow and blue. These are accompanied with the 3 stars that represent my Championship wins. There's yellow throughout that reminds me of my helmets in the past. The candy apple red balances with the yellow very well. Raí, I look forward to meeting you in person to present you with your prize! Thank you all for entering this competition, I'm taken back by your creativity."

Red Bull driver Daniel Ricciardo also unveiled a new crash helmet design on Wednesday, aimed at incorporating the colour-scheme his team adopted for 2016, plus making it easier to differentiate between the Australian and team-mate Max Verstappen.