Last year, Lando Norris euphorically celebrated McLaren’s newfound pace with his iconic podium celebration at the Hungarian Grand Prix. However, in the process, he also smashed Max Verstappen’s winner’s trophy. The Briton regretted his mistake and has now brought out a special helmet for the 2024 Hungarian GP to make up for it.
Norris will be wearing a helmet designed and hand-painted by Herend Porcelain Manufactory. This is the same brand that made the 2023 trophy that Norris accidentally broke. In a video, Norris explains that it wasn’t an idea that came to him just a few weeks ago, but something he had been working on for over eight months.
I still can’t believe the extreme hate Lando received last year.
He apologized to everyone he needed to, he was sorry and he wished he could go back and change it.
And he spent 8 months making this helmet wanting to show his gratitude to the company. photo.twitter.com/7hiTa3Iup5— Tam ⁴ (@F1Tami) July 19, 2024
Explaining why he regretted breaking the trophy, Norris said: “I didn’t mean to do it in the first place. It’s something I regret. If I could go back in time, I would go back and undo it.” Then he added: “This is my way of making up for it”while untangling the helmet for the 2024 Hungarian GP.
Norris added that it is also his way of showing his appreciation for traditional Hungarian porcelain. However, the Briton received a huge backlash last year when the incident occurred. Norris apologised to all parties involved and, however, felt the need to do more for this year’s race.
The trophy Norris broke is said to have cost $45,000 and took six months to make and hand-painted. It had a special pink design to celebrate the launch of Barbie.
However, Verstappen was given a new trophy later that year to replace the one that had broken. And now Norris also went a step further to protect the craft.
Norris will not sell miniatures of his Hungarian GP helmet
Norris has his own merchandising platform called LN4. The Brit is launching a special Hungarian GP collection called “Porcelain Dreams” for fans. However, one fan asked if the Hungarian GP mini helmet will be available on the site.
LN4’s Twitter account responded that it would not be available. Its post read: “There are no miniatures for this model, as the hull was delicately hand-painted by the Herend team. This release is our way of sharing the art with you!”
Given that it took Herend eight months to hand-paint Norris’ helmet, it doesn’t seem feasible for the organization to do the same with multiple helmets. Norris also protects the traditional Hungarian porcelain craft by not making it available to the entire world in large quantities.
