In 2004, Bell reached the half-century mark as a helmet manufacturer. Coincident with this milestone is the birth of the HP1, the first model homologated to the new FIA 8860 standard. The goal was to ensure higher levels of protection in all potential impact areas, absorbing 50 percent more impact energy and improving load spreading during side impact accidents. Resistance in case of penetration by external bodies and protection from injuries caused by excessive rotational accelerations was also increased.
The HP1 helmet was designed first and foremost for Formula 1, which that season, the last with V10 engines, saw new lap records set at almost every circuit on the calendar. From 2010, the FIA made the 8860 standard mandatory in all world championships, after a decisive episode in technological evolution. During qualifying for the 2009 Hungarian Grand Prix, Felipe Massa was struck by a part lost at high speed – over 250 kilometers per hour – by a car ahead of him. On impact, the object passed through the visor, hitting the Brazilian driver’s face, who lost consciousness and slammed into the barriers
Flown by helicopter to nearby Budapest Hospital, Massa underwent surgery after he was found to have a concussion with a fracture in the left supraorbital area and a cut on his forehead. Massa, having escaped the worst scenario, would return to racing in the 2010 season after a period of recovery, continuing his F1 career.
Starting in 2011, a strip of Zylon was added to the top of all helmets to reinforce the weakest part of them. Zylon is an extremely resistant material, twice as strong as Kevlar and commonly used in military armor. The new HP3 was thus developed with the addition of the Zylon segment; in 2014 the HP7 was introduced, featuring an innovative design of the shell and integrated shield, optimized by moving the pivot points down and forward to improve acoustic and aerodynamic performance and increase energy management capabilities.
The process of continuous development then led to the birth of the so-called “super helmet,” according to the updated 8860-2018 standard, mandatory for F1 from 2019 and in other championships soon after. It was the outcome of a decade of research and development that also involved helmet manufacturers, including Bell Racing, of course, which in 2018 was once again the first to unveil a model homologated to the latest standard: the HP77, shown in fact during the FIA Sport Conference in Manila, Philippines.
The HP77, still in production, features an eyeport lowered by 10 millimeters, above which a band of ballistic-derived materials is incorporated within the shell, replacing the previous Zylon strip, as required by the new regulations. Among the numerous impact tests, to which it was subjected, the Advance Ballistic Protection test involved withstanding a 225-gram metal bullet fired at 250 kilometers per hour.
The more stringent testing requirements of the 8860-2018 standard prompted Bell to change its helmet shell construction techniques. The transitional hand-lamination process, using dry weave materials with resin brushed into the mold, was replaced by the so-called pre-preg fabrics with resin embedded in the material using compression molding process. This allowed to create stronger and lighter shells.
The HP77 helmet has gradually become the favorite choice of drivers in all single-seater categories, such as Formula 2, Formula 3 and Formula Regional, as well as in IndyCar and Formula E. Over these seasons, the HP77 helmet has undergone several evolutionary steps to push the standards of protection, driver comfort and aerodynamics further and further forward. In Formula 1, the HP77 has come to be used by more than 70 percent of the drivers on the grid, including Lewis Hamilton, Charles Leclerc, Fernando Alonso, Carlos Sainz, George Russell, and others. It represents a flagship model in the Bell Racing range, the most advanced of all.
