McLaren and winner Norris defend President Trump’s Miami GP visit

As the F1 team faces backlash for welcoming Donald Trump into its Miami garage, McLaren insists it is “apolitical”.

Earlier, it was revealed that race organizers had blocked a businessman close to the former US president from holding a $250,000-a-person fundraiser for Mr Trump at the paddock club.

However, according to Osterreich, the reason Trump, who is also running for president this year, was still invited to the circuit is because people who pay for entertainment at the Paddock Club are allowed to invite anyone they want. ” It is said that it is the body.

Trump then posed for a photo in the pit lane with McLaren CEO Zac Brown, received a guided tour of the garage, and was joined by team driver Lando Norris, Red Bull’s Max Verstappen and Charles Leclerc. After meeting with others, the three took to the podium on Sunday.

“He came to congratulate me,” Norris said afterward. “It’s an honor when someone like this comes up to you and takes time out of their life to honor what you’ve done.

“He said he was my lucky charm because it was my win,” added the British driver. “Donald is a very admirable person in many ways. Yeah, it’s a cool moment.”

Why McLaren? Officials believe the team was chosen because it is currently wholly owned by Bahrain, with RTL describing the Saudis as having “close ties” militarily with the US. .

On social media, many F1 fans accused McLaren of being involved in divisive US politics.

In response, the team said: “While McLaren is a non-political organization, we recognize and respect the office of the President of the United States, so when asked to visit our garage on race day, we received a request from the FIA ​​president and We responded together with the CEO and others.” Liberty Media and F1.

“We are honored that McLaren has been chosen to represent F1 and have the opportunity to showcase the world-class engineering we bring to motorsport,” added the Woking-based team.