The helmet is one of the most personal expressions in motorsport, and for F3 driver Christian Ho, who is set to join Rodin Motorsport after a year with DAMS Lucas Oil, it has become a rolling autobiography, detailing years of evolution and development. What began with childhood heroes has steadily matured into a sophisticated tribute to his roots, inspirations, and on-track identity—an evolution guided by continuity, deliberate colour choices, and a growing sense of self.
Inspired by superheroes
Christian Ho’s helmet design journey started in an unexpected place, and—crucially—with an unmistakable pop-culture punch.
“So my very first helmet was an Ironman helmet. I know a few people who had one too. When I was racing in Asia, someone had a Spiderman helmet, Power Ranger helmet. But I ran the Ironman helmet for like a year and a half,” the driver recalled.
As his racing ambitions sharpened, so too did his desire for a recognisable identity. Consequently, the superhero phase gave way to something more personal and enduring, marking the beginning of his racing identity.
“When I first started though, I was a white helmet bandit. But then had the Ironman helmet before going towards this design over the years. This one – I tried to keep an identity since go karts,” he explained.
The colours that never left
From karting to single-seaters, the backbone of Ho’s design has remained remarkably consistent. While the colours have evolved, the underlying structure has stayed true to the original vision. That base is his visual fingerprint—recognisable at speed and resilient to changes in teams, sponsors, or series.
“Actually, the helmet I used in Europe when I first started in Europe was a little bit different to this one. The helmet I started using from OKJ, the colours are completely different now, but the base design I kept the same,” Ho noted.
F4 the inflection point
Inevitably, there came a moment to push beyond the familiar. The turning point arrived during his Formula 4 period, when distinctiveness became non-negotiable. Thus, Ho shifted from merely blending in to intentionally standing out—an essential pivot for any young driver trying to establish a brand in crowded paddocks.
“I began using this colour scheme from my second year in Formula 4.,” he said, adding, “I thought the helmet I had was quite basic, especially the colours. I think it was red and orange, which was the colours of the team I was in at the time.”
That realisation sparked a bold transformation. With the need for distinction clear, Ho embraced a palette that would cut through the noise.
“I decided it was time for me to stand out a bit, so made a bit of a change. I started using the gold and purple like the colours of the LA Lakers.
He added, “I don’t support them, but I think the combination is really nice.”
However, Ho also pays tribute to his own journey, weaving his personal identity with that of his 2025 team, DAMS Lucas Oil. He wore their blue alongside his own colours, just as he wore the white and yellow of his 2024 team when he raced with them.
“The blue comes from DAMS. Last year, when I was with another team, it was just yellow and white. This year, I added some blue to make it a bit different.”
Singaporean heritage and personal totems
As the only Singaporean driver on the FIA F3 grid, Ho ensures his heritage is unmistakable. He features it prominently on his helmet.
”The back of the helmet is the Singapore skyline, very simple. I have my name and initials on there, Singapore flag on the side, and the top used to be a lion or cheetah. But it was the same as Nicola’s helmet.”
Rather than maintain the matching element, Ho opted for more personalised totems—a tribute to basketball star Kobe Bryant, who passed away in 2020, and a representation of his astrological sign.
“We had the exact same thing on the top and in the end, I changed it. I have a memorial to Kobe Bryant here because he’s my idol, and now I have a scorpion here because I’m a Scorpio. I feel like I’m what they say, vengeful. But that’s the main thing of the design.”
However, Ho revealed that his decision to change had been born out of surprise, noting that the design clash had been unexpected, given his use of a lion in his helmet design in previous seasons.
“I was using it the entirety of last season and then came into pre-season testing and saw the same thing on his design and he said his sister painted it! In the end, I changed it and this is what we have now,” Ho explained.
A special helmet to race at home
Looking ahead, Ho’s evolution remains in motion, with a sentimental concept on the horizon.
“If I were to do a special helmet, it would be for my home race, and I’d have pictures of when I was young. Like in a monochrome colourway, memories of Singapore on there. I’ve never done one, so maybe next year!” he said.
Inspired by Bryant
Beyond aesthetics, one motif carries profound personal weight.
“I wanted to put a tribute to Diogo Jota but couldn’t find a sticker. This tribute I’ve had since my second year in F4. There was one point in my life I felt a bit lost in terms of racing and why I was struggling. I read Kobe’s book, and related to it and took a lot of inspiration from it, so that’s probably my favourite part,” Ho concluded.
As Ho prepares for next season, his helmet remains a canvas that charts his journey from karting to F3. What began as a superhero mask has matured, step by step, into a living emblem—equal parts heritage, ambition, and personal mythology.
