The unique porcelain trophy Lando Norris inadvertently smashed on the podium of the Hungarian Grand Prix reportedly took six months to make – however the company behind the design seemingly had a contingency plan in place should the worst case scenario occur. While the on-track action failed to provide much drama on Sunday, it was all happening on the podium immediately after the race.
Max Verstappen, Norris and Sergio Perez were all presented with their respective prizes before popping off their champagne bottles. Norris has adopted a trademark celebration on podiums, where he bangs his bottle on the podium, immediately causing champagne to spray out of the top.
But Norris’ actions also caused Verstappen’s trophy to fall and smash to the floor with the Brit nervously looking back at the broken award. The drivers were able to laugh off the incident afterwards with McLaren issuing an apology on social media on behalf of Norris.
However, the company tasked with making the one-of-a-kind trophies may not have shared in the laughter. According to Hungarian F1 journalist Sandor Meszaros, all trophies for the Hungarian Grand Prix are handmade by Herend Porcelain Manufactory, taking ‘approximately six months’ to make.
They also cost around £34,577 (€40,000), but it appears as though the company, which dates back to 1826, had planned for one of their trophies being smashed. Herend’s CEO Attila Simon said: “We are ready to react, no worries.”
Verstappen didn’t appear too annoyed at Norris’ clumsiness with the pair joking about the incident after the race. Norris joked: “Max just placed it too close to the edge. It fell over, I guess. Not my problem, it’s his.
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