Martini Racing Gear: The Complete Guide to Sparco's Heritage Collection
The Martini stripes have outlived almost every livery they competed against. They went on a 935 and a Lancia 037 and a Brabham, and forty years later people who have never been to a race weekend recognise that particular arrangement of light blue, dark blue and red.
Sparco has held the licence since the World Rally partnership of the 1980s, and the Heritage Collection now runs to 81 products — from a $20 sportsack to a $1,950 FIA-homologated seat. That range is the point of this page, and it is also the problem with it.
The one thing to understand before you buy. Martini is a livery, not a safety standard. Some of this collection is genuine competition equipment with FIA homologation. Most of it is beautifully made kit with no rating at all, and is not trying to have one. The two look similar in photographs and cost wildly different amounts. Every table below says which is which.
Browse by Category
| Category | What is in it | Items |
|---|---|---|
| Clothing & Accessories | Tees, polos, hoodies, knitwear, jackets, caps. street | 57 |
| Bags & Paddock Kit | Tour and travel bags, backpacks, duffle, folding chair, umbrellas. Read the guide. street | 11 |
| Shoes | Eight street shoes and one FIA racing shoe. Read the guide. 1 FIA 8 street | 9 |
| Gloves | The Land glove in three generations — all FIA. Read the guide. FIA | 4 |
| Seats | Legend carbon-kevlar, Pro 2000 QRT, R100 v2 reclining. Read the guide. 1 FIA 1 sport | 3 |
| Suits | Competition and WRC driver suits, plus the MS-4 coverall. Read the guide. 2 FIA 1 mechanic | 3 |
| Harnesses | FIA 8853-2016 HANS endurance 6-point, a 3-point street belt, and pads. Read the guide. 1 FIA 1 street | 3 |
Or see everything Martini in one place — all 81 products.
The Race-Rated Half
This is the short list of Martini kit you could actually take to a tech inspection.
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| Item | Rating | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Legend Kevlar Racing Seat | FIA 8855-1999 — carbon-kevlar shell | $1,950 |
| Competition Racing Suit | FIA homologated | $1,259 |
| WRC Racing Suit | FIA homologated | $1,259 |
| Pro 2000 QRT Seat | Fibreglass competition shell | $1,099 |
| HANS Endurance 6-Point Harness | FIA 8853-2016 | $419 |
| Top Racing Shoes | FIA 8856-2018 | $299 |
| Martini-R Land Racing Gloves | FIA approved | $145 |
| FIA Tow Strap | FIA rated, 3,000kg, 16mm mount | $49 |
FIA ratings expire. Suits, harnesses, gloves and shoes all carry a homologation with an end date, and your run group decides what it will accept. Check the date on the listing and check your event's regs — see What to Wear on Track for how the standards actually work.
The Street Half
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The bulk of the collection lives here, and there is nothing second-rate about it — the SL-17 has a P6 racing sole and a rolled heel for pedal feel, the jackets are properly made, and the bags get used for years. It is simply not certified for anything, which is fine for the drive, the paddock and the pub afterwards.
Guides in This Series
- Which Martini Shoes Are Actually Race Shoes — eight street, one FIA, and how to tell them apart
- Seats: Legend, Pro 2000 and R100 Compared — $479 to $1,950, and which one a scrutineer accepts
- Suits, Harnesses and Gloves — what is homologated and what only looks it
- Paddock Kit: Bags, Backpacks and the Chair — the half of the collection that gets used every weekend
- Off-Track Motorsport Style — the apparel side, and what the livery does off a race car
Further Reading
- What to Wear on Track — helmets, suits, gloves and shoes, and what clears tech inspection
- Racing Suits Explained — SFI versus FIA, single versus multi-layer
- Racing Seats 101 — bolt-in buckets through to full containment
The Bottom Line
Buy the stripes because you like them — that is a perfectly good reason, and most of this collection exists for exactly that. Just know which side of the line the thing you are buying sits on. A $1,950 Legend and a $119 SL-17 are both Martini; only one of them is going to satisfy a scrutineer.
Not sure about a specific item? Send us the product and the event you are running, and we will tell you straight.