Norris Claims Karting Trophy After Challenge from McLaren Boss Zak Brown
Newly crowned 2025 F1 champion Lando Norris edged out McLaren CEO Zak Brown in a friendly karting challenge. Despite Brown setting a faster raw time, penalties cost him the win, allowing Norris to claim a trophy he jokingly vowed to keep for himself.
Fresh off his 2025 Formula 1 World Championship win, Lando Norris faced a different kind of challenge: a head-to-head karting duel with his boss, McLaren CEO Zak Brown. In a lighthearted event hosted by DeWalt and eBay, the pair competed in a series of timed challenges, with Norris ultimately claiming victory and a personal trophy he was determined to keep.
Why it matters:
Beyond the playful competition, the event highlights the unique and close-knit dynamic within the McLaren team. In a sport where pressure is immense, fostering a strong, positive relationship between driver and team leadership is crucial for morale and sustained performance. This friendly rivalry showcases the team spirit that contributed to their recent championship success.
The details:
- The challenge pitted the newly crowned 2025 world champion against the CEO who helped build the team around him.
- While Brown completed the karting course faster in raw time, he accrued more penalties throughout the run, which ultimately handed the win to Norris.
- After securing the victory, Norris humorously referenced the team's typical policy of keeping his race trophies, declaring of his new prize, "They don't allow me to keep my trophies, so this one is all mine!"
The big picture:
This event serves as a celebratory capstone to a monumental season for McLaren and Norris. After securing his first drivers' title by a narrow two-point margin over Max Verstappen in Abu Dhabi, moments like these reinforce the human side of the sport and the camaraderie that fuels a championship-winning organization. It's a reminder of the team's current peak and the positive culture driving their success.