JOURNAL

In 2026 BMW marked a Le Mans win in the colours of McLarens that never won it. What 3 tribute liveries kept, and what a tribute has to keep.

It won 12 championship races in 2 seasons and never Le Mans. The results, the film and the colour values behind the pale blue and marigold 917K.

A racing livery is the complete visual identity worn by a race car. Before sponsor-led designs took over, colour could identify a car’s nationality. Today the same surface carries team identity, partners, numbers and graphics, all shaped around the body underneath.

A partnership with the league we already race in, rather than one we bought into.

The cars of this era are remembered for how they looked. Most of what made them look that way was written into the rulebook before anyone drew a line.

Most explanations of livery design start with colour. Colour is close to the last decision made, and by then a surprising amount of the car has already been spoken for.