Sebastian Vettel felt compelled to show his support for Ukraine by wearing a special 'No War' helmet livery in testing in Bahrain, but the German rather wishes that there would have been no need to convey the message.
As the war rages between Russia and Ukraine, the Grand Prix Drivers' Association chose to show its solidarity with the latter ahead of the start of re-season testing in Bahrain.
Formula 1's drivers came together for a group shot on the grid in Sakhir, with everyone wearing a 'No War' t-shirt and standing in front of a special banner and the Ukraine flag.
But Vettel went a step further with a special helmet repeating the message and on which were emblazoned Ukraine's symbolic sunflower and on the top the words to the classic John Lennon song 'Imagine'.
"I wish I would have not come up with the design, because there was no need," Vettel said on Saturday in Bahrain.
"It's a strong sign to just show the support. All the drivers got together as well on Wednesday as we thought we'd use the opportunity to just show that we are united and take a stand.
"It's horrible what's happening. It’s like a nightmare and we don't seem to wake up, so that's the simple reason why my helmet design is quite simple and but effective I decided to go that way."
The helmet also featured on its bottom lining a string of world flags, one of which represented the unrecognized region of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, a flag Vettel was forced to peel off following a complaint to the FIA from the Cyprus Automobile Association.
"Around the bottom there’s just the opportunity as a small sign to have all the flags of the world," explained the Aston Martin charger.
"I didn’t control it, I didn’t check all the flags, but apparently there was some issues, some minor ones.
"I took the little sticker off because some people got upset, which I think fails the message – the message is that obviously the whole world should be united and is united, I think, to fight war.
"I think we grew up in times of peace and I think we appreciate peace a lot.
"It’s like a nightmare, a shock to see the images and to see what's happening in the news."
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