A Maltese designer’s vision for new livery for Red Bull Racing has been displayed in Miami ahead of today’s Grand Prix, after coming in as a runner-up in a global design competition.

Philip Sultana

Philip Sultana, a designer and illustrator, has been a long-time fan of the sport, and his love of livery was part of the reason he ended up in his chosen profession.

“I’m very opinionated when it comes to livery and helmet designs, and so when Red Bull opened a call for designs, I thought, now is my time.”

The Miami Grand Prix is a veritable newcomer to the sport, with its inaugural race taking place last year, an event that saw Red Bull’s Max Verstappen clinch the win.

In the lead-up to the race, Red Bull opened a call for designs for fans to submit their visions for the team’s livery, with the winning entry being used on the cars for today’s grand prix. While Sultana’s design didn’t make the final cut, the team informed him it had caught their attention and would be exhibited at the fan zones in the track throughout this weekend’s grand prix.

As opposed to more traditional race locations, the racing weekend at the Miami International Autodrome has a vibrant and lively atmosphere to it, an element that influenced Sultana’s submission.

The design embraces Miami’s beaches and high-rise skyline, with palm-tree-lined streets culminating in a sunset that swirls into a colourful vortex, embodying the death-defying speeds at which F1 drivers zoom around the track.

The blue night sky represents the cool air, while the red hues of the Miami sunset depict the hot air generated by the RB power unit, Sultana said, describing the design.

“The two streams collide and create a spiralling effect, mimi­cking the energy of bulls locking horns in the Red Bull logo. The final result is a livery that embodies movement, speed, and energy – the core values of RB F1. I used the brand’s colours to keep the car easily recognisable on the track, while still giving it the feel of a special edition livery that’s not easily missed.”

Sultana’s ambitious vision may even have been a mitigating factor to seeing his design on the track rather than confined to concept art.

“I did this mostly as a personal project to challenge myself, and when you start working on a project like this you quickly realise that there are certain limitations,” he said.

“I may have gone overboard with it because when you’re producing livery for an F1 car, every gram can cost you a split second so they tend to go for bare designs that are easy to reproduce.”

Every gram can cost you a split second so they tend to go for bare designs- Philip Sultana

Sultana explained that livery tends to either be sprayed onto the car directly or applied via a large decal, with his design most probably requiring the latter to be applied to the car due to its complexity. He estimates that this could have added up to half a kilo to the overall weight of the car.

However, as a design exercise, Sultana felt that he should not let practical limitations limit his creativity.

“This isn’t a traditional track like Monaco or for a legacy team like Ferrari; Miami is the most ‘out there’ and extravagant grand prix there is,” he said.

While Sultana maintains that he doesn’t support any team in particular and just enjoys the sport overall, he has previously driven a single-seat Red Bull car around the team’s ring in Austria. “I would say that I’m neutral, I honestly just love the sport.”

On a final note, Sultana says he typically does not condone so-called design contests that exploit artists for free work, but said that he participated in this because he felt it was a genuine attempt by the team to engage with fans.

“We have seen this in Malta before, where government entities or private companies tap the public to design something for them rather than hiring a designer; I don’t condone it and I fundamentally disagree with the practice.

“I felt this one had a different motivation behind it because the practice doesn’t yield the best results for branding; when you hire a designer it’s a collaborative process between the client and the designer to come up with the right vision.”