Of all the trends, I’ve always found gloves a bit niche. Popular pieces tend to be helmets and race suits, especially from modern drivers with their funky designs, but gloves essentially exist to take the brunt of a grand prix, so are often the worse for wear by the end.
Regardless, there’s a strong market as gloves can be readily attainable, reasonably priced, easily signed and can be framed-up nicely for presentation. There’s an image of Ayrton Senna after qualifying at the 1989 Monaco GP, left hand off the wheel yet his glove is still wrapped around it, showing how tightly he was gripping the wheel, inset. This is the punishment race-used gloves go through. They’ll be creased, discoloured, frayed… the works, but that does add a patina that’s almost…
