Lando Norris says Donald Trump is “someone that you’ve got to have a lot of respect for” after meeting the former United States president after his win at the F1 Miami Grand Prix.
The McLaren driver claimed his maiden F1 victory at the 110th attempt in Miami after taking full advantage of a Safety Car period to jump into the lead, before pulling away from Red Bull’s Max Verstappen.
Trump was a surprise guest at the Hard Rock Stadium and was seen chatting with McLaren CEO Zak Brown, FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem and senior F1/Liberty Media officials during a visit to the British squad’s garage ahead of Sunday’s grand prix.
Norris said it was a “cool moment” when Trump came up to him to congratulate the 24-year-old Briton on his breakthrough win.
“I didn’t see him in the garage, to be honest. I was busy prepping for the race. But he saw me afterwards, and he came up to congratulate me,” Norris explained.
“So I guess an honour, because whenever you have someone like this, it has to be an honour for them to come up to you, to take time out of their life, to pay their respects for what you’ve done.”
(L to R): Donald Trump (USA) Politician and Businesman with Zak Brown (USA…
Norris revealed Trump told him he was his “lucky charm” during their post-race chat.
“He said he was my lucky charm because it’s my [first] win. So I don’t know if he’s going to come to more races now,” Norris added.
“But yeah, there are a lot of special people or cool people that have been here this weekend. Donald is someone that you’ve got to have a lot of respect for in many ways.
“And yeah, for anyone like that who acknowledges what you can go out and do and acknowledges the work ethic that goes into things, you’ve got to be thankful for that. And I was. So yeah, a cool moment. And that’s all.”
Trump served as the 45th president of the United States between 2017 and 2021. He is the Republican presidential candidate for the 2024 election.
The 77-year-old is currently on trial in New York for allegedly falsifying business records to cover up a hush-money payment to a porn star.
McLaren issued a statement explaining they had received a request for Trump to visit their garage at the Miami Grand Prix.