LEGO has unveiled the trophies for this year’s British Grand Prix, with more than 10,000 bricks used to create what the drivers will be lifting on the podium.
The designs, which were inspired by the famous Royal Automobile Club Trophy handed to the winner of the British Grand Prix, will be on show as the top three drivers and winning constructor take to the podium.
British Grand Prix trophies unveiled as unique LEGO designs join the podium
The LEGO brand has brought itself closer to Formula 1 as an official partner this season, having joined McLaren in creating a full-size, driveable version of the McLaren P1, driven by Lando Norris at Silverstone last year.
More recently, the tie-in with Formula 1 has seen official sets released to mark 75 years of the sport, and fully driveable LEGO cars caused a stir when the drivers took them for a spin in Miami in May.
Now, their latest creations will be held by the top three drivers at the British Grand Prix.
The trophies are set to have a LEGO collectible Formula 1 car mounted to the front of the trophy, alongside a golden brick on top of the design, to balance respecting the sport’s heritage, alongside the brand putting its own twist on the design.
A closer look at the LEGO British Grand Prix trophy.
Samuel Liltorp Johnson, Creative Lead at the LEGO Group, spoke to PlanetF1.com about the process of how this project came about, with the P1 and Constructors’ trophies using 2,717 bricks each, and the P2 and P3 trophies using 2,298 apiece, totalling 10,030 pieces for these creations.
Reflecting on what is set to be a “very global” moment, Johnson explained that conversations with Silverstone led them to the path of paying homage to the RAC Trophy design, given its iconic status in the sport, alongside Silverstone playing host to the first ever Formula 1 Grand Prix back in 1950.
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“I joined the team to be on this special project, and I worked together with the Silverstone team very closely to discuss, like, ‘I’ve got these ideas for a trophy, here’s a big gold LEGO brick on the front, what do you think?’ And they’re telling me the stories about 75 years of Formula 1, 75 years of Silverstone, and that just became the the best story to tell, right? You’re at the absolute pinnacle of Formula 1 on its birthday,” he explained.
“The constant of this 75 years at Silverstone is the RAC Trophy that’s been presented at every race, and it’s so prestigious, it has everyone’s name who’s ever held it engraved on it, and we just thought that it would be awesome to have the trophy be inspired by that.
The LEGO British Grand Prix trophy, next to the RAC Trophy.
“When you see it, the LEGO-designed trophy is very similar in its form to the RAC Trophy, and that just became [a direction], that would be really cool if we respect that heritage, and tell the story in a playful way through LEGO bricks – and be a bit cheeky with the style of it, because LEGO is also a bit cheeky, right?
“It’s respecting the heritage, but telling that playful story, and then looking to the kids of tomorrow that are looking at the drivers of today and being inspired by that. Maybe one day they’ll be holding the trophy – maybe even a LEGO trophy, who knows?”
Johnson, designer of more than 90 different LEGO sets in his 15 years at the company, admitted the speed of the design process and significance of what had been taken on led to an emotional moment when he saw the finished product for the first time.
“I don’t think I’ve ever cried before seeing a LEGO model on a shelf,” he said with a smile.
“I found out about this project around Easter time, and so it’s been very fast-paced to execute the design process and then work out, can we make it gold? And then work out who’s going to build it and who’s going to ship it, and how do we get it from Denmark to England? Somehow, we managed to co-ordinate all of these things.”
One question around the drivers had to be asked, however, given the potential for damage present with three drivers celebrating after a race, with Lando Norris having had to apologise after accidentally breaking Max Verstappen’s trophy at the 2023 Hungarian Grand Prix.
Johnson explained that every reasonable step has been taken to make the designs as strong as possible, but added that seeing how the trophies are handled on the podium is “the most nerve-wracking thing in my life right now”.
More than 10,000 bricks were used across the LEGO British Grand Prix designs.
He added: “I designed a spine inside the middle of the trophies, which is made of LEGO Technic, which is very good at holding bricks together because you can turn it the other way and build.
“Everything that is stacked is locked, also sideways, so it’s very strong.
“I’ve watched a lot of podium clips over this process to see, like, what are these guys doing? And every one of these guys does a different thing with the trophies.”
He added with a laugh: “The one that scares me the most is actually Lewis Hamilton throwing the trophy in the air, which he’s done a lot of times! And then also Lando Norris for the ceramic [in Hungary 2023].
“I think it’s going to be really great. They’ll see that it’s LEGO, I think it’s also just a great thing to see. They’ll see it in their hands and know that it’s made of these bricks, right? But it’s also going to be memorable forever, no matter what happens. It’s going to be great.”
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