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Brit Lando Norris 24, Claims His First F1 Victory
Lando Norris Smashes Max Verstappens' Hungarian Grand Prix Trophy Moments After Race
Verstappen got the better of pole-sitter Lewis Hamilton off the line and never looked back to comfortably win in Budapest, with Norris second and Sergio Perez third
BBC NEWS 24 JULY 2023
Max Verstappen holding his broken trophy after the champagne-spraying was done
Max Verstappen spent only a few seconds in possession of his trophy for winning the Hungarian Grand Prix before it was accidentally smashed into several pieces.
He was handed a ceramic trophy, as has been the case for this event in recent years, for his victory. He was on the top step of the podium with Lando Norris to his right in second place and Sergio Perez third.
After the national anthems, they were handed their champagne and began the traditional spraying of one another.
But that was when things got out of hand.
Norris has a habit of hitting his bottle off the podium to open it before he begins to spray. And he did that again this time – except the impact sent Verstappen's trophy toppling off the top step.
Lewis Hamilton red-faced as error helps Max Verstappen to easy Hungarian Grand Prix win
Max Verstappen cracks joke after re-watching Lewis Hamilton's horrible Hungarian GP start
Footage shows the trophy break into several pieces. But the celebrations carried on regardless, with Norris nervously glancing behind him at the broken trophy several times as the champagne continued to flow.
The official McLaren Twitter account apologised for Norris' carelessness. And the Red Bull team account responded in good humour, writing on social media: "We can’t take you anywhere! Glad to have you up there with us though. We're gonna need some glue."
Not quite how Red Bull would have imagined the trophy would look in their cabinet
Verstappen won't mind too much, though, after a much easier afternoon's work than he would have been expecting. All the pre-race hype was about a battle with Lewis Hamilton, who had beaten the runaway championship leader to pole position on Saturday.
But the Brit suffered a horrible start off the line and paid the price for that. He was passed not only by Verstappen but also by the McLarens of Norris and Oscar Piastri, ending his hopes of what would have been a fairytale victory.
Instead, Verstappen won his seventh F1 race in a row and was a very pleased man after climbing out of his car. "The car was good on any tyre. We could look after the tire wear and, basically, that’s why we could create such a big gap," he said of his fearsome RB19.
And, reflecting on a new F1 record for his team, the Dutchman added: "Twelve wins in a row is just incredible. What we've been going through the last few years is unbelievable and, hopefully, we can keep this momentum going for a long time."
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