Lando Norris opens up on Brazilian GP firework incident
Lando Norris has spoken about the São Paulo Grand Prix incident that saw him walk into an unguarded firework in a podium celebration that went badly wrong.
Norris was a picture of perfection in Brazil, until he got to the podium.
Lando Norris explains firework incident
Norris was performing at his absolute best in Brazil on Sunday, as he dominated the Sao Paulo Grand Prix to take victory from Red Bull drivers Max Verstappen and Isack Hadjar.
Starting from pole position, Norris quickly established a significant lead before managing his race to the flag with little threat from behind, even when the rain returned in the closing stages.
Having taken the flag without putting a foot wrong, Norris took to the podium with his usual enthusiasm, which this time, came at a cost.
Firstly, the outgoing champion attempted his signature celebration and slammed his champagne bottle on the floor. More often than not, this sends a shot of champagne into the sky, before the usual soaking commences.
However, on this occasion, the entire bottle shattered upon impact, leaving Norris looking confused while holding the bottle neck.
As he was drenched by the Red Bull drivers, Norris endured a secondary difficult moment, as he stumbled forwards into the fireworks, with sparks being sent shooting into his ear.
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Speaking on a social media stream, Norris explained the incident in his own words.
“How’s my ear? My ear’s fine,” he said. “Thanks for asking.
“The problem is, everyone’s like, “Why’d you walk into it?” It’s because I got sprayed with champagne in my eyes, but then I couldn’t see anything.
“I didn’t know where I was going. I don’t think people realise how much it hurts and stings having the champagne in your eyes.
“But I, I didn’t know where I was moving, and all of a sudden, it just gets pretty warm, pretty warm on my ear. They felt pretty warm, yeah. I couldn’t see it, so I just felt it though. I was already in shock that my bottle broke for the first time in my life.
“But it didn’t hurt. I think I just felt something on my ear and thought it was a fly.”
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