Hugo Boss Just Decked Out a Formula 1 Race Car in Denim

Hugo Boss is bringing high fashion to high-performance racing. 

The German label’s Hugo brand has reimagined the race car of the Visa Cash App RB (VCARB) Formula 1 team. The VCARB 01 has been outfitted with a new livery featuring a dynamic denim design inspired by Hugo’s signature sartorial style. (Hugo Boss recently separated into two brands, with Hugo focused on edgy, modern style and Boss favoring more classic and refined designs.)

The nearly 1,760-pound racer usually showcases a simple blue and white colorway, making the new denim exterior is quite a significant change. It is F1’s first fashion-inspired livery in over 30 years, in fact. The Benetton F1 team did a similar thing in the 1990s, dressing its four-wheeler in the “united colors” synonymous with the Italian fashion label.

The denim-clad car will debut on the track at the Singapore Grand Prix this weekend. The VCARB team will also decorate their garage in an overarching denim theme, while drivers Daniel Ricciardo and Yuki Tsunoda will be rocking bespoke racing suits and Hugo outfits over the weekend.

The Hugo x VCARB collaboration highlights the extent to which fashion has infiltrated F1 in recent years. Labels such as Hugo Boss, Tommy Hilfiger, Puma, and Tumi stand as team partners, as do luxury watch brands like IWC, TAG Heuer, Bremont, and Richard Mille. F1 drivers have become ambassadors for fashion houses, fronting campaigns and showing off collections.

Lewis Hamilton has been at the forefront of F1’s style revolution. The Mercedes driver, considered motorsport’s most fashionable gent, has upped the ante in terms of trackside attire, wearing looks by Rick Owens, Burberry, and other notable designers before races. He has also designed a lifestyle collection with the French fashion house Dior and created several watches with IWC.

“Over the years we’ve seen fashion brands join forces with F1 teams and drivers, especially when it comes to outfits, but never have we seen any of them take this step in fully immersing themselves on track too,” Ricciardo, said in a statement. “We’re really raising the stakes here and paving the way, showcasing that there’s so much more that can be done for brands to explore.”

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Ricciardo adds that he expects more brands to follow suit and unveil fashion-inspired liveries for their respective teams. Let’s see if the Aussie is right.