An awkward exchange in the cooldown room following the Hungarian Grand Prix drew attention to both Lewis Hamilton and Lando Norris as the two drivers seemed to butt heads after a dramatic race.
The exchange unfolded after Oscar Piastri, Norris’s teammate at McLaren, clinched his first Grand Prix victory after much toing and froing between the Papaya teammates. The Australian driver had led the race almost from the start, executing a perfect overtake at Turn 1 of lap 1. The strategic interplay that followed saw Norris temporarily leading the race due to a team-planned undercut before complying with team orders towards the end of the race to allow Piastri back in front to secure the win.
Post-race, the atmosphere in the cooldown room was charged. Hamilton, impressed by his former team’s performance, complimented the drivers:
“Phew, you guys are fast,” to which Norris responded with a pointed reference to Hamilton’s past advantage, saying, “You had a fast car seven years ago…”
Third placed Lewis Hamilton of Great Britain and Mercedes attends the press conference after the F1 Grand Prix of Hungary at Hungaroring on July 21, 2024 in Budapest, Hungary. Lewis Hamilton and Lando Norris shared…
Bryn Lennon/Getty Images
The 7-time champion responded: “Seven years ago? Long time. Were you here seven years ago?”
“Yeah, well, you had a quick car, you made the most of it, and now it’s us,” Norris returned.
Hamilton later clarified his comments, ensuring Norris understood the compliment aimed at McLaren’s performance:
“I wasn’t complaining, I was just complimenting your car.”
Norris had a tough choice to make towards the end of the race when he was asked by his team to give his place back to Oscar. While he didn’t look like he was going to follow the team orders, he eventually slowed to allow his teammate to pass.
“It depends. I mean, I’ve done this for… I don’t know,” Norris said following the race, via PlanetF1. “I think I was put in this situation and it’s not my fault that I was leading the race in a way. Simply, the team should have just boxed Oscar first and we wouldn’t even be having this discussion.”
Despite the strongt critique, Norris did not hold back in his praise for Piastri’s performance:
“This guy here [Piastri] deserved to win today. He did an amazing job. He got me off the line and that’s a very special feeling, winning your first race and I say first race because I think you’ll agree that it’s his first race win and not a Sprint race. So yeah, I’ll let him enjoy it and for us as a team, and to have the win is an incredible weekend for all of us.”
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