Sign the baby? Lando Norris says he’s used to strange requests at home race

Lando Norris with fans signing his autograph on an image of Ferrari's Charles Leclerc. Picture: Molly Darlington / Reuters.

Lando Norris with fans signing his autograph on an image of Ferrari's Charles Leclerc. Picture: Molly Darlington / Reuters.

Published Jul 10, 2023

Share

Silverstone, England - Lando Norris is used to strange requests from a legion of fans at his home British Grand Prix - but signing a baby's forehead was a step too far.

The 23-year-old McLaren driver is staying at the circuit hotel but prefers to go the long way around to meet the fans rather than take the direct route to the paddock over a connecting walkway.

Sometimes it can be a step into the unexpected.

"I just get more and more people wanting me to decide their tattoos and stuff," he told reporters. "I feel like it's a lot of pressure, deciding what someone is permanently going to have. I feel that's a bit weird."

Norris wears several bracelets on his wrist, most provided by fans.

One says "muppet", another spells out "Let's go Lando".

"I used to call (former team mate) Carlos (Sainz) a muppet," he explained. "The fans still say it now ... I think I called him a muppet in a video and the fans loved it.

"I get loads (of bracelets) from fans. During the weekend I'll get more and I'll swap them out eventually. It's just one thing I like to do."

One thing he did not like to do was to autograph a baby's forehead.

"I didn't do it. Signing a baby. That's a bit of a weird one," he said.

Organisers were expecting a record crowd of 160 000 fans on Sunday, and 450 000 over the entire event, with the sport's popularity soaring thanks to Netflix docu-series "Drive to Survive".

Norris came second in Sunday’s Grand Prix, coming home 3.7 seconds behind race winner Max Verstappen, and head of fellow Brit Lewis Hamilton.

Reuters

Related Topics:

motor racingformula 1